Race - How does defunding and dismantling police departments work in practice? If you hear gunshots in your neighborhood do you call your local community activist?
I haven't been going to church lately. I don't want to go and they say we're at 25 or 50% capacity and get turned away. I haven't been tithing either. Take it up with the Lord.
Doubt they will get rid of police. The alternative is tribal anarchy and you could make a case that those that want to get rid of police need them the most. Most people have a distaste for Trump and perhaps so the media. Tucker Carlson at Fox has
ReplyDeletethe highest rating in TV, and if he uttered the slightest Criticism of Trump, the Good Lord would strike his floppy mane.
Churches: how come some stayed open and some s. distanced?
For some, maybe most, people, Church is about social contact,
doing things with fellow church members; others like tradition.
Knew an insurance salesman one time. Never been to church in his
life. Decided to run for City Council. Joined a big church, got on the board of directors, volunteered to work with the poor,
went every Sunday. It was almost like the conversion of St. Paul
on the road to Damascus. Lost the election and never went to church again.
Fauci according to polls is extremely admired..hard to get that
when you're golfing all the time.
I don't know about this trend work 'til you drop. I go through my news apps on a regular basis and what strikes me is there's more opinion and less actual journalism seems to me. Advocacy journalism is more like it esp. at the New York Times. They're not supposed to cover the President as if they have a personal distaste for him but many of their headlines cue the reader as to who the bad guy is. Old media bias which if you're human you're biased by definition. You might be misreading the public. As a personality Trump had many negatives even before politics was a twinkle in his eye so his personal negatives didn't just come out of the closet. If it's a referendum on liberalism he could win again. As usual you see things differently.
DeletePondering can the media discuss the pandemic in a serious way without creating and perpetuating an endless anxiety state?
ReplyDeleteGot some new shoes today. Place was more crowded than I would expect. All customers and staff were wearing facemasks..sort of
ReplyDeletea surprise, given that there is so much resistance (more here than back there, I suspect). Now the vaccine people are looking at a natural adjunct, helper T-cells. These are lone ranger types in our immune system- go around looking for any odd or threatening entities, including Covid. Oddly, some people
have more than others, and maybe the asymptomatic people and younger people are rich in helper t-cells. Libral/progressive, agreed: they are now dirty rotten commie/fascist one world creeps. (and they'll take our guns). Like it or not, it's the
new GOP slime job. Hillary lost 4 people in Benghazi-investigate her 9 times in congress, find nothing. Lock Her Up. Kind Of interesting. there is quite a flock of important older Republicans called the 'Lincoln Project' trying to gain back
respect for the party. They have $$$, they are meaner than Biden, and their ads make the mainstream media look like kittens. One person said it takes a Republican to beat a Republican. The problem, enunciated long ago by Will Rogers-
"I don't belong to an organized Party, I'm a Democrat."
Can I assume you are still mad at FDR for starting Social
Security? Yeah, the way I see it, it's a referendum on pardoning war criminals and convicted sycophants, on discussing things with experts instead of smelling your own farts and selling ridiculous red hats. Geez, Z-Man, don't get me going.
The news today is largely reporters' opinions being dressed up as news or are you one of these people who consider media bias a myth?
DeleteI consider news as news (something happened, verifiable, real, etc) and I consider opinion for what it is. Take the OJ case: he was found not guilty (news) - I believe he was guilty (opinion) or the Obama birth certificate:
Deletehe was born to a US citizen in Hawaii (news) - I believe he was, many think he was born in an African hut (opinion)
- Some citizens claim the right to not wear a mask in
the constitution (news): hardly (opinion) ..ad infinitum.
The concept is rigidly taught in journalism majors, and I
will sometimes look up newspeople to see what their background is. We all blame the messenger if we don't like the message.
That's because you agree with the bias. If the media had a conservative bias you'd be all over it.
DeleteI think the philosophy of journalism has changed. The lines have become blurred. Reporting has become tinged with opinion so as to cue the reader in. If a news article says that many people feel that Trump is anti-science that's reporting that many people feel that way. If the title is "Trump Is Against Science" that's clearly bias. More likely the headline will be "Trump Against Science Many People Say" which gives the journalist plausible deniability after all some people do say that and I'm reporting here. However how many people are quoted in the article who feel that Trump is not against science? What is the point of the article? I'd say the paper wants it out there as it leaves a negative impression with the reader.
Delete" If the media had a conservative bias you'd be all over it." Right you are. FoxNews has not replied to my e-mails,
Deletethough. Trump and science: today his bimbo press secretary said "The science should not stand in the way' of reopening schools". I saw her make the statement, but
you can spin it to say, oh I dunno "Trumps know more about science than scientists do" or maybe "progressive
scientists get in way of Trump educational progress". Also
today, that long time guardian of Republican values, George Will said (here I paraphrase from memory) This is the first US administrations run by the mafia. I used to
dislike George Will, but either he or me is coming around to the same level. This whole covid thing is making the black blacker and the white whiter in the politics of disease. As so often happens, the moderate, centrist or
neutral persons get flack from both sides (along with Science, Trump and maybe the Jehovah Witnesses). Eisenhower got good press because he deserved it..can you spin that?
Your comment is a total opinion and with a little polishing it can become an Old Gray Lady editorial or a Paul Krugman opinion piece. I get it it's hard to work up a froth when the media is beating up on someone you hate.
DeleteYou yourself said remote virtual learning doesn't really work. What about those poor households that have no internet? Does the wifi fairy come down?
Just so we're clear the science position seems to me reliving the Great Depression IF it comes to that (the indefinite lockdown) where everyone is dirt poor, out of a job but virus-free. The media would have screaming headlines the next day "WE CONQUERED THE VIRUS!!!"
DeleteI see Dave Miller posting today over at 'Rational Nation'. He mixes it up on extreme RW blogs and the thousands of cussword,
ReplyDeletescatology and hate are not his. Peaceful guy, Dave...and boy,
do they hate him.
Common thing these days for people on the web to search out subs they disagree with. People who don't believe in Bigfoot will join a Bigfoot sub. Excuse me while I mix things up at a wood sprite board.
DeleteIndeed. I got kicked of a site, the subject of which was to kill all wolves. Mostly hunters who hated the competition, apparently. I posted that wolves do far less damage than pitbulls. (how to make friends and influence
Deletepeople - not)
Some people still hate wolves? It's not enough that we almost extirpated them in the past?
DeleteYou never know if a sub is right for you until you try it however Dave may be a glutton for punishment.
DeleteNot sure what TV production entities are thinking, but I chose an old episode of 'Barney Miller' instead of 'My 600 lb Life' this afternoon. There was a neat black detective in the office,
ReplyDeletealong with Wojo and the bunch. What does BLM think of that?
A good show. I was never too much into those old shows from the 50s where the father wore a suit and tie even on his day off.
DeleteThe media routinely refer to Dr. Fauci as "the nation's top infectious disease expert" and that's an exact quote. How do they determine that? Is there no say a Dr. Charles Kim somewhere in the country who has his level of knowledge but lacks the high government post? I'm reminded of Jim Gaffigan talking about brain surgeons. "The best brain surgeon in the world." Are the others no good or less good? When I made my first appointment with the GI doc for a colonoscopy everyone said you want to go to him he's the best. Are the others less skilled in going up there? Do they have a competition? Who determines?
ReplyDeleteI guess it is a default title. He is even older than me, so he may be slipping, but
ReplyDelete"As a physician with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Fauci has served American public health in various capacities for over 50 years, and has been an advisor to every U.S. president since Ronald Reagan. He has made contributions to HIV/AIDS research and other immunodeficiencies, both as a scientist and as the head of the NIAID at the NIH, and from 1983 to 2002 was one of the world's most-cited scientists in scientific journals." I guess your point is "one" of the top infectious disease experts would be more acceptable? He is only
5'7", probably driven by a Napoleonic complex like others that size: Kim-Jong-un, Jeff Bezos, Tom Cruise, Mark Zuckerberg and
Steven Hawking. We six footers get by unnoticed....
Right that's a good way of putting it "one" of the nation's top infectious disease experts. It smacks of media hyperbole like someone is dubbed Miss Universe or The Sexiest Man Alive. Does the title come with a throne and scepter and robe with gold trim and a ring?
DeleteSo 'Make America Great Again' is hyperbolic? Needs a neutral modifier? "Make America Sort of Great Again" or
Deletea spelling change? 'Make America Grate Again'.
Dunno, hyperbole sells hats...
The Fauci title makes it sound like it he went on a virus version of Jeopardy and the other two contestants were the next two smartest doctors in the country he'd blow them away. "What is T-Cells Alex."
DeleteBigfoot, Sasquatch- what drives people to keep looking for this
ReplyDeleteseemingly mythical species? Do they get bored and go hunt for
sunken Atlantis, Elvis, the Ark, old Aunt Jemima bottles? Do
they hope for headline "Nation's Top Bigfoot Researcher Finds
Footprint"? Is it exhilarating and disappointing simultaneously?
IMO it makes more sense for someone to say, try and photograph a
rare bird (redshafted nutcracking Emu perhaps), get a blind date
with Jennifer Lawrence or adopt a pack of timberwolves. It's like Chasing Chimera 101...it is the chase, not the chimera.
You got a better handle on the phenom?
I said to my friend who is a big cryptid believer if Sasquatch really existed they'd find a dead one in the woods eventually. He kinda got impatient with me saying there are two many credible eyewitness reports. How come a car never hits on. The latest theory is Bigfoot is some kind of interdimensional creature who knows where the portals are and that's why you can never get evidence. Kind of convenient.
Delete
DeleteEvidence from a TV insurance commercial proves
Bigfoot exists.
That's funny.
DeleteSome have even spiritualized Bigfoot. On First Nation some Navajo channel Sasquatch is seen as a peaceful force, a steward of the environment keeping the forests together and the animals in harmony but when man started polluting the environment he got pissed and vanished presumably into one of them portals.
Pass the peace pipe.
I don't overly obsess about spelling mistakes but with the library computers off limits as potential vectors of covid this is what you get. It becomes annoying. A few threads ago I wrote Dr. It instead of Dr. Oz. I don't even know how it happened but I'm too lazy to delete it and compose again.
ReplyDeleteI don't know why Blogger doesn't allow you to edit Comments. Say you have a beautiful wall of text going, an articulate comment on advanced virology and who knows for whatever reason, you hit the wrong key, Google hates you and you end with "I like cock" do you just let it stand or delete the whole 350 word essay?
ReplyDeleteAI knows better than we simple humanoids. I lost four comments today while checking spelling and data. I come back with my info and the entire comment has been whisked away, through the
ReplyDeleteelectromagnetic data clouds to the Google Control Center, where the office girls no doubt read them and criticize. They could at
least sent them back with red marks and maybe a D+.
It's ai gone rogue.
DeleteI first started noticing ai on my phone when I'd text my friend. He'd text back and instead of me responding in my own way I'd get a prefab menu like "Okay sure", "No problem", "Thanks" and being somewhat the lazy type I'd hit one of them but this has gone too far.
I hope I ain't around for the Singularity. You go to work and your boss is an Android.
Was looking at demographic data yesterday and ran across a pie chart for US racial makeup. Piece of pie for white, Hispanic, black, multiracial and other. The "other" was a skinny 0.7%.
ReplyDeleteToday's curiosity is how does one get listed as other? Robot?
Alien? Bigfoot named Darrel? Last of the Mohicans? Does the census guy take a look at me and pencil in "other". Demographics, the curious science.
For fun's sake list "other", give your cell # and see if they call you.
DeleteCity council meeting last night, TV highlights included the healthcare people vs the anti-mask types. The latter seemed to
ReplyDeletebe of two types: 'try and put a mask on me while you look down the barrel of my AR-15..and 'don't need no mask, Jesus will look over me'. Hard to be sympathetic. In the case of the gun
people, the virus doesn't care, they look delicious. For the Jesus types, there is the old tale of the flood. Guy is up to
his knees in water. Boat comes by, "get in, it's going to get
higher". No, God will save me. Later he is up to his waist and
another boat comes by. "We are a rescue team, climb in" No, I'm not worried, God will save me. Late In the afternoon the man is
up to his neck in the rising water. Helicopter drops a harness and megaphone addresses him "Grab the rope, we will pull you up"
Stubbornly faithful, he answers that God will save him. Of course he drowns. Gets to heaven, looks up God and complains:
I drowned in the flood and you didn't save me" God strokes white beard and says "Whatja mean..I sent two boats and a helicopter." No sports on TV today and I'm tired of Mr. Pillow
ads. Any advice?
That's an old joke but I like it. Our pastor told it during his homily once moral being as I take it that God works through other people.
DeleteI'm not getting the mask thing. Dr. Fauci said to Judy Woodruff we can turn this thing around in two weeks if everyone is on the same page (my paraphrase). We're not on the same page.
No, some of us aren't even in the same book. Most the other countries clamped down hard early and are back to
Deletenormal. IMO, it is too late to clamp down, ya can't test
and trace hundreds of thousands. Fauci is naive if he thinks every one believes in science. Trump is naive if he thinks business will recover when we are all sick and dying. So we follow our own paths. Singularity may get here before Covid is gone, the rate we area going. Kind of
a downer, cuz life either way will not be back to normal.
You nailed it "old joke". I heard it on Red Skelten about
60 years back. Much longer than 'heaven helps those who help themselves. Religion wise, how come sandals have made
such a big comeback? I can't keep them on. Heck I'm pulling up my pants half the time. Joseph of Arimathea would have given 45 shekels for some Nikes...
When the Mrs. was helping out in 3rd Grade last year, she give a little test on general knowledge. One of the questions was "who built the pyramids". Most the little urchins answered
ReplyDelete'Egyptians', a couple didn't know, and one kid offered 'the
ancient aliens'. I have a hard time understanding the conspiracy crowd even after reading who believes conspiracy theories by people who study people. You got a better handle on the concept?
In the mid-70s the House Select Committee on Assassinations came to the conclusion that the killing of JFK was probably a conspiracy thus contradicting the Warren Report. MK-ULTRA was actually a real longtime conspiracy undertaken by the CIA and there was even Congressional testimony to deal with the matter. Tuskegee - black men in the south who had syphilis were deliberately not treated in order to study the long-term effects of syphilis. Jeffrey Epstein - a huge international conspiracy involving sex trafficking and the under-aged. Occasionally real conspiracies really do exist. Maybe another good question is what's behind the anti-conspiracy theory bias?
DeleteSure real conspiracies exist. Most don't have theories.
DeleteAs the article explains, it is the information we study
and how we interpret it. Say "vast right wing conspiracy"
and ponder how a minority now runs our country, Say "Hillary ran an underage prostitution ring in a basement pizza place in Brooklyn"..and some guy goes in
an shoots the place up. A significant portion of us think
science is evil and fraudulent. IMO some of the more bizarre theories are just snippets some people grab to
reinforce their existing biases. I guess that would be an
anti-conspiracy bias. The article notes that the defense of hair brained concepts based on minimal or ill informed
information is always defended by "Oh yeah, your information is no better than mine". That is a well known
logical fallacy in argument, but quite effective. Telling
a scientist that he knows nothing of science is profoundly ignorant: telling a scientist that you don't like his findings is perfectly acceptable. Was there a
conspiracy theory about Epstein, or did the witness finally get through to law enforcement?..perhaps there were rumors, dunno. I figured he was just another rich
playboy like the president (who owns no conspiracy theories because of his constant talk and twitter-no
secrets there). So, who built the pyramids, anyway?
The majority of conspiracy theories are low quality. Somebody shoots and kills thirty people and others say the whole thing was staged. I operate under the premise that a very small percentage of conspiracy theories might be true. Doesn't mean I have some underlying psychological need to believe a conspiracy theory just that I have an open mind. I will at least consider some of the stronger ones.
DeleteWell re Epstein I think the point is as Ross Douthat pointed out if even a few years ago there was a conspiracy theory detailing exactly what Epstein was involved in those conspiracy theorists would have been deemed crazy. Truth is stranger than fiction.
DeleteThinking a small percentage of conspiracy theories might come true doesn't make you a conspiracy theory type. Conspiracy Theory as a term doesn't take into account the 'conspiracy'.
ReplyDeleteIt is the cover up/perception of cover up..like aliens at Area 51: if 'they' deny it, it must be true. Truth is stranger than
fiction indeed. One is obvious the other made up. Consider
Shakespeare. His plays re-wrote history in a lot of ways, he
began with the facts, then colored them by 'embellishing' his
charactors- inventing he historical novel. Keeps the reader
interest, unless the reader is interested in digging deeper.
Further, we keep in mind that many of the historical sources
are hagiography (making the subject look really good) like
Einhard's biography of Charlomagne. Einhard was court historian
and he knew who paid his wages. Other Charlemagne contemporaries had a more jaundiced view. Understand I am not
considering the political theory holder as somehow psychologically damaged, just perhaps some proclivity or naive about information interpretation. Through the looking glass as
they say- they no doubt think of me as damagee goods and a sucker. That insurance commercial with Bigfoot was pretty
compelling, no?
As I say most conspiracy theories are low quality (e.g. Pizzagate) but I am partially open to a well articulated and plausible conspiracy theory if one comes along.
DeleteThe commercial is a classic.
Back earlier this month, a rockslide cut Idaho's ohly north
ReplyDeletesouth highway. It is still totally blocked. C'mon, would Cuomo
let the Brooklyn Bridge close that long? Would Yonkers not swifly replace a stoplight cam? Aw..who wants to go to Boise
anyhow?
The stoplight cam would be replaced the next day.
DeleteYou should organize a rally. Maybe 5000 irate Yonkerites
Deletegiving the finger to the camera. Probably make you tube.
Keep the cops off your neck, though.
That'd be grounds for a summons right there. Dissing the cameras.
DeletePlus YouTube could decide it violates their policy and take it down. Threatening cams or something.
Delete99 here today, supposed to be 100 tomorrow. Mowed the back lawn at 8 AM and spent the day in the cool air conditioned house. Is it me, or are there only 10-12 nice days a year anymore? Back when, say on the Oregon Trail, people walked in hot clothing in
ReplyDeletethe desert sun all day long, then through a blizzard, like the
Donner Party. We've progressed, life is easier. One the other hand, a starving peasant didn't have to worry about Reddit, the IRS or how the Yankees were doing. Time Machine: were there such a device, where would you like to visit?
Ah maybe 70s-80s. At least the music was better.
DeleteWe're getting a similar heat wave. Hard to believe the virus can survive in this.
DeleteJust a guess; humans are easier than bats for this Covid
Deletething.
It's not enough that bats carry rabies.
DeleteAnother problem to drive us batty. Phylogenetically, the bat is
ReplyDeletemuch more related to humans than rodents. Probably why those inversion cots advertised on TV are so popular? ..and why we are prone to catch their viruses?
You mean the Teeter Totter. I'm scared of that thing.
DeleteHanging upside down must be hard on digestion at a minimum. Hopefully, the ICU/Covd ventilators/beds won't
Deletebe hung vertically to create more space..and for sure, not
head down. Out walking again, you got any coyote or barn owl photos, maybe run across Roger Stone out jogging?
My thing is all the blood rushing to your head when you're upside down can't be a good thing.
DeleteI didn't get my second stimulus check yet.
Uh, that check might have gone directly to the Yonkers
DeleteTraffic Camera Enforcement Department..unless you have overdue books at the library.
I see Twitter has banned conspiracy theory, along with QAnon:
ReplyDeleteapparently some of the arguing has involved dire threats, publishing addresses and broken the Twitter Profanity Spell
Check software. No problem for me, don't Tweet and hold no
profound conspiracy beliefs. The interesting thing, IMO, is like
masking requirements, private companies can do that, governments can't. Full circle from Hobby Lobby winning the right to ban birth control for it's underpaid employees.
Meanwhile the religious admonition against masks: is it a conspiracy theory to quote 1 Jehoshaphat 2-21, "For behold,
a small rock tumbled down, upon which was etched the 11th
Commandment. Verily the followers gnashed their teeth and
forsooth did rend their garments, for it read -Thou Shalt Not
Wear a Mask; neither for protection from the Plague Of Evil, not for collecting Sweets on All Hallowed Eve- ?
Back in the day before Saty went totally to FB I made the point that sex is not medically necessary ergo there should be no law that an insurance company or just a business has to cover it which gave me grief from her. Of course they could cover but that's their business. Is bc prohibitively expensive otherwise? Dunno. Why aren't condoms covered? If you choose to get yourself fixed should I have to pay for it? Such is my line opinion.
DeleteI don't agree with what Twitter is doing. Of course someone always points out that technically only the government can censor. Don't know if you ever heard of the radio personality Lionel (not his real name) but he said and I agree "I want to hear it all." Put it all on the table. Like with YT banning anti-mask videos what purpose does this serve? Just make a rebuttal video and post it. What horrible thing would happen if we just went with free speech? Would the universe implode?
DeleteI guess there are limitations to free speech from various
DeleteSCOTUS judgments through the years..libel, child prostitution, incitement etc. It is guaranteed in the constitution, along with a free press, but I feel that
speech in 1787 differed to some extent to anonymous writing available to millions (you know, like the long
musket in the corner was not 50 round assault rifle).
I don't waste time on 'wanting to hear it all' being of
the school of thought that considiers 'It is better to
remain silent and be though a fool..than to speak and
remove all doubt. IMO, the inanity of it is demonstrated by the thousands of Soviet Intel posts mimicking the worst of both sides in the last election. Their success
was remarkable. I suppose wasting 5G so some people can
spread their venom is collateral damage..and stupid is
perfectly legal. Dunno, just me, myself & my keyboard...
Nobody is denying there are real limits on free speech. How though is an anti-mask video on YT equivalent to libel/slander or underage porn? Post the video and YT can affix a rebuttal vid from the CDC. I really don't care if the anti-mask video is medically inaccurate. Do we then ban homeopathic medicine or home remedy videos? Deal with it!
DeleteSure free speech has exceptions but my pov is keep those exceptions down to a bare minimum unless you like homogenized and boring discussion. Don't be a part of cancel culture.
Home remedy: I don't do videos, but I am a big proponent of gargling with salt water. The ionization of salt breaks up plegm, which is just a biological micelle. I
Deletealso like calamine lotion, preferring it to cortisol crèmes etc. Other advice- get plenty of rest and avoid
exercise. I don't and we shouldn't give out home remedies unless asked. BTW, how did Oral Roberts cure so many blind
people in wheelchairs on his TV show?
I tried gargling with salt water once and it made me nauseous. Calamine lotion with zinc is the ticket for poison ivy. Messy though.
DeleteI don't understand the Cuomo travel ban. If you come to New York from a high risk state when you get here you have to self-isolate for 14 days. Why not just say you can't come here at all for the time being? The traditional travel ban. So under the Cuomo version the traveler has to hole up somewhere. Where? A hotel? Then the lucky staff has to disinfect the room after the traveler goes home. Also the traveler when he or she gets here can still infect someone pre and post-isolation. Doesn't stay the hell home work better?
ReplyDeleteNo idea of how self-isolation is monitored. NYC is a national transportation hub, presumably they come by all
Deletemeans of transportation. Sure, they should stay home, but
you know how people are.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteThat's what the critics of the Cuomo plan said how do you enforce it? Maybe Cuomo himself enforces it. Dunno.
DeleteBuild a Great Wall? Interesting new on the vaccine front:
DeleteU of Washington is making an RNA analog, mimics Covid's
genetic makeup. When injected, it self replicates creating a powerful immunity. With all these prophylactic
shots there are the usual concerns- side effects, length
of immunity etc. But that is the only way we are going to
get anywhere near herd immunity (saw a closed caption on
the news that called it 'heard' immunity-Spellcheck strikes again) The other lingering problem is the corona
virus family. Many of them cause the common cold and they
never really go away. Can't imagine them hanging around
with no victims for months, but they do. Conspiracy Theory: They go to Rio in the off season.
It looks like Pfizer is going to be the one.
DeleteGood a guess as any. Pfizer/BioNtech has a $2 billion contract with NIH/DOD, has an RNA vaccine beginning phase 3 and plans to ramp up under Project Warpspeed. The various researchers/companies are hard to untangle. For
Deleteexample, another RNA vaccine receiving NIH $$ it the Moderna/NAIAD (Cabridge Research) consortium involving
Johnson & Johnson. There are also 3 inactivated virus
teams (all in China), 2 non-replicating viral vector projects by Oxford/Astrozenica and Cansino, the former
with US gov't $$ assistance, 1 protein subunit trial at
Anui Zhifei (Peking) and 4 DNA based vaccine projects
at Inovid (San Deigo), Osaka (Japan), Genexine(S. Korea)
and Cadila (India). All of these are experienced outfits,
some huge, some tiny. The CEO of Pfizer stated that they
would like to complete the contract and collect the $2 billion, but if not, a $200,000 loss is easily a tax
write-off. That's the way it is in BigBiz, workers work
and the ivory tower types figure how much depreciation they can get off the company plane and boardroom silverware. Geez, Z-Man, don't get me going!
The way the media talks the Pfizer thing sounds like a done deal. I think I'll pass on Made in China.
DeleteMaybe I'm slow but why is there a coin shortage in retail due to corona?
ReplyDeleteBill Gates says the vaccine won't be available until late 2021.
ReplyDeleteDidn't know he was making one. I'm wondering how many people will not take it: you have your vaccine denier types and the
people who eschew masks will not be lining up. If it costs a lot, more people won't take it. Didn't know about the coin shortage, are you one of those cowboy types that uses silver
dollars? The economy is weird: new cars sales way down, not
much restaurant traffic, millions still not working, but stock
market doing quite well. New houses are up, canned goods real
good. Haven't seen data on the cronut economy though. More masks
and hand sanitizer around here. We as Pet store a couple days back..all staff and customers masked, but not the kittens or
Guinea pigs. A couple big teenage boys came in no masks, clerk
outfitted them with some, which they accepted gracefully. Our
governor has given cart blanche to mayors and counties to pass
whatever rules they think necessary. No rules down in Twin Falls: Ammon Bundy and a group of well armed patriots forced the
city council to renounce any actions and declare a covid hoax.
Ammon is headed up our way. One of his buddies from the Oregon
stand off was stopped by highway patrol, headlight out. Being
a well armed patriot, he tore off, got chased through 3 counties
stopped in a tiny town, came out shooting and was the only casualty. He was hospitalized here then whisked off in critical
condition. Ammon announced that it was a deep state threat and
he is going to damn well do something about it. Ammon, believe it or not, is a Mormon. Can't miss him: no mask and a bandolier
around his camouflage jacket. A patriot. (why is that word starting to sound ugly, like socialist?) Hadn't noticed any coin shortage here, but I do mostly plastic card transactions.
I didn't know the anti-vaxxers were going to cause a real problem. I always thought they were not a significant % of the population. CBS News interviewed the head of the NIH and all systems are a go for early Jan. 2021 for a vaccine. Just because Bill Gates predicted some type of pandemic early on he's now in charge? The anti-maskers are now a real movement it seems. Funny I think bandanas are cool looking so if it's a manhood thing they're worried about don't know what the prob is.
DeleteThe anti vaxxers can get quite extreme . You put them in with other anti this or that & pro gun, you might as well have antifa. When I
Deletewas a kid, the only signs ever carried were the rubber workers on strike at the Uniroyal plant..and they threw
candy. Fauci thinks along Gates lines, suggesting 'widely
available' vaccine well into 2021. I'm not sure: standard
vaccine development took years- some of the work is standard, some is new concept..now I hear they might run
short of glassware for vials. Understanding anti-maskers takes another anti-masker. It's a mindset like "I can dive
off the Empire State building because it is my right", or
like the bullyboys around here "You cops get the hell off my property, she's my girlfriend and I can break her face
all I want." Hard to say what's legal or illegal, right or wrong, smart or stupid - but we seem to be that way and Covid doesn't help. Sometimes I feel like I was adopted as a baby from Canada..the land of the sensible.
I said in another comment once that people take their lead from the State. If a state doesn't mandate mask usage then why throw all the blame on the people? My point about the anti-vaxxers is I don't think they'll effect herd immunity all that much. January 2021 is the predicted date for the vaccine with wide availability in the Spring of 2021. I keep getting the impression we're reading different newspapers.
DeleteHerd immunity: a statement last year from the CDC-
Delete"Flu vaccination coverage among adults was 37.1%, a decrease of 6.2 percentage points from the previous flu season" Heard a doctor complaining today that a patient
that overcame Covid 5 months back and tested negative
showed up a couple weeks back, had caught it again and
died. Anectdotal, but fascinating. IMO, Covid has more
surprizes in store. Conspiracy Theory- it will evolve
quickly and many times causing Covid 20,21,22 and maybe
Zambezi West Nile SARs Covid the year after that. Like you say, perfectly healthy person can get run over by
a garbage truck on a sunny day- why worry?
I myself never got a flu shot but I would get a covid shot. I never got the flu btw.
DeleteA lot of the experts are saying it's very unlikely you can get covid twice. What may be happening according to the New York Times is that even when somebody recovers from covid it's a long drawn out process and they can still experience some of the symptoms weeks or even months after they were officially declared "recovered." It may not be a second infection. They're still recovering from the first infection.
Also as a ps to the garbage truck at what point does endless worrying cause health problems? I haven't opened my news apps in the last couple of days and I feel a little better.
DeleteOK so I watch just enough news to learn about the return of those refrigerated mobile morgues in TX. Have any scientists to date attempted to explain how the virus survives in 100 degree weather in late July? Can it survive in a Venusian environment? Maybe Bill Gates has some thoughts?
ReplyDeleteApparently some of the protests are still going on and some have turned violent with scores of officers injured. Wondering how the year end 2020 retrospectives will turn out. 2020 - The Year From Hell in words and pictures.
Survive at 100 degrees? Once in the body interior, that is about where they thrive. On the other hand, sunlight is
Deletevery hard on most viruses. Said it before- soap and water is every bit as effective as hand sanitizer..just doesn't have the Covid glamour. Now what are they protesting? Is
the virus problem affecting our good behavior? Covid PTSD?
Apparently local law enforcement is mad at having Fed law
show up, can't work together and makes protesters madder.
So..how does some 7-11 clerk handle a guy with a gun that
refuses to wear a mask? Are they paid that much? Guv't is
getting shy about continuing unemployed benefits, landlords upset about no rent payments, nurses totally
exhausted and teachers trying to figure out how to teach
crowds of urchins. Good time as any to be retired, I guess.
I don't have any background information on this but could quantum computing be speeding up the vaccine process? Drug discovery etc.
ReplyDeleteAt this point the quantum cubit people are touting the use, claiming better and faster theoretical molecular modeling and especially complex systems such as physiology
Deleteand pharmacology interactions. IMO the future looks good, but right now the cubit types know nothing of the nano
biology and the biochemists no nothing about cubits...and
most of us know nothing about either. It's like watching
a TV documentary.
Went to check out the church scene today. A woman in the back told me I have to sanitize my hands with the sanitizer dispenser in the lobby before going in. I asked her about the church bulletins and she said they're not printing them at this time. Went inside. Two collection boxes in the back so I dropped my envelope in the slot. The usher didn't have much to do since he usually passes the basket around. Every other pew cordoned off with tape and no misalettes in the available pews. The woman reader read the readings with her mask on which I don't think was necessary. At Communion time the priest donned his mask and sanitized his hands. The Mass was sparsely attended and I didn't see many of the Saturday regulars. Hard to tell if people are not coming because either they're afraid or annoyed.
ReplyDeleteIt's OK. The Church will do what it has to. They went totally underground in the catacombs of Rome, had services
Deletein secret homes during James I persecution (the old gunpowder plot days), paid extra headtax to the Muslims, but held masses, worked underground during the Nazi days
and they can do this. You're so finicky.
I wasn't criticizing I was reporting. I must give off a vibe or something.
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DeleteI do get the sense that some people may have drifted away esp. with Cardinal Dolan lifting the obligation for Sunday Mass attendance. If I have an issue it's with the libraries. If a church can find a way to do it certainly the county library system can find a way.
DeleteYou were reporting. You were the media. We must criticize the media, right? Just kidding, but trying to make a minor point. Yes, it may be that people will drift away.
DeleteMrs. hasn't been to Sunday service for months: misses the singing and her church friends. Big funeral across the street at the cemetery yesterday, packed under the tent like sardines, no masks-sort of has me wondering. I agree
about libraries. Patrons there are generally spaced out doing their own thing, no talking or shouting (which I guess is a spreading mechanism). Heck if they required masks, I see no problem at all. The obligation thing: is
that some sort of requirement that if not met gets you into theological trouble? Maybe miss a mass, light a few
candles and say some verses? Libraries: remember when they were silent halls filled with books? Now you have a
kiddy class with clowns, modern dance in another corner,
a pottery group demonstrating, gamers sweating and some
creepy entomologist looking for information on the mating
habits of the spotted Ethiopian sand beetle.
The Z-Man bias.
DeleteI think the holdup with libraries is the army of young laptoppers. Must be something fascinating on their laptops they stay all day. Yard work what's that?
Laptops and smartphones: they are everywhere, on airplanes, in
ReplyDeleterestaurants and bars, kids on skateboards texting and most perplexing young couples dating-each absorbed in their laptop
or smartphone. Used to be at McDonalds breakfast a few old guys
(or in the far prairies, a lot of old guys sitting in a bunch
telling each other the same stories as yesterday. Now, I'm the
only customer with the newspaper and coffee. Everyone else is
interacting with the e-cloud, reading and writing about who knows what. I see that big chip maker Intel is losing stock value, seems some upstarts blew right by them with better and
cheaper microchip stuff. Will they go the way of Royal Typewriter Corp?
Here's a conspiracy theory for you. IMO, there has been a slime job on Fauci-
ReplyDeleteto the extent that the administration has had to assign security
personnel to follow the little masked man around. It can be
a hassle. Back when I lived in Mpls, I got calls in the middle of the night saying the caller was going to kill me. I tried
laughing it off, whistling into the phone, hanging up. But they
kept coming until I figured the guy had a southern Ohio accent.
Knew a guy like that at work, hadn't talked to him much, but he
was always friendly. So I mentioned to him about the threatening
calls in an off hand way, not suggesting it was him. Never got
another call after that. You suppose 99.9% of called or written
threats are just harassment and not actually carried out?
It's funny I was just googling "Sinclair script for media." I hadn't heard of that particular conspiracy theory but I have read newer scientific theories that covid may have been around a lot longer than most of us thing. Apparently some traces of this Coronavirus were found in sewage water in 2019. My doctor's office has dropped the "-19" and simply calls it covid.
DeleteI think with Fauci his mind wanders off to visions of lockdowns and every now and then someone has to nudge him with the economy's important too. Many people see him as the key voice that made putting millions of Americans out of work possible. IMHO some truth mixed in with over generalizations.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteFound in sewage water in Spain in early 2019 I meant to say. Getting a little tired of this mobile mcblogging. Can I make an app't with the library?
DeleteWord on the street is Zuckerberg knows it's in his best interest for Trump to get reelected. Biden may want to regulate FB and even break it up.
ReplyDeleteWhy on earth were you getting death threats BB? Did you uncover something like the government has a Bigfoot cleaning toilets at some Army base in SC?
ReplyDeleteSpanish sewer water from before Wuhan? They must have gone back over the records and spotted something unusual, maybe thought it
was a flu or cold virus? Hard to verify by repeat testing, since
we have no time machine yet. Another mysterious clue to a mysterious virus. Death threats: I figure some guy fooling around, probably had a short list from the phone book playing the terrorizing game. Now days I guess they do it over the internet. Only other possibility, I was working at a cosmetics
factory at the time and when I was collecting samples off the
aersol filling line, I noticed the floor covered with ethyl alcohol was routine, but also noticed that the weighing line
where cans run along and get knocked off for being over or under weight was a plastic belt. Remember the VanderGraf
generators, a column with a metal sphere on top, built up high
voltage, if a girl touched it her hair stood up and out? Well,
that is essentially a plastic belt which builds a charge which
gets collected in the sphere. Thinking high static electricity
with flammable puddles on the floor could be dangerous, I wrote
a brief report to the head of the test lab. (Next day as I was
passing the production mgr office there was a top level meeting going on and I heard my boss say "g*d damn VanderGraf generator"
The guy with the south Ohio accent worked in that area and might
have gotten an earful, maybe traced his problem to me. Or not.
After a month of nightly threats they just quit. I'm fine with that. Just one of those things you remember. Like the time I
backed up at a northern Idaho shopping mall- accidently ran over
the foot of one of the drunk loggers that was standing there.
It was hit and run. I mean if it was an old lady...but drunk
loggers are like antifa/gestapo/NKVD when they get mad. It was
a clean getaway. BB on the lam, ya know?
The theory goes Corona was practically everywhere just waiting for the right environmental catalyst.
DeleteHarassing calls - For you kind of a China Syndrome on a minor scale with you the Jack Lemmon character.
Took a harassment course at work today and learned that in some states you can't make fun of a person's political affiliation or political beliefs. Can you be fired for making fun of a co-worker who believes in Lizard Illuminati?
ReplyDeleteUsed to be pretty loose in the workplace. I got away with a lot of stuff, probably because some people put up with it, some don't and some get as good as they get. Had a guy whose wife was
ReplyDeletesome sort of born again speak in tongues Haleluja type-made him
go with her every Sunday. He could mimic the Rev real good. Made him a comic book starring him praying "give me a sign,
give me a sign" for a few pages. Next to last page a shining
cloud appeared, a BIG voice asked "You wanna sign?" "Oh yes,
give me a sign" Next page showed BEHOLD and lightning coming from the cloud. Last page showed him on the street with a sandwich sign on his shoulders that read "Eat At Murph's".
(yeah, I was a part time cartoonist in my varied past). He took it home and she laughed her head off. You think these days I'd
be in the county jail?
These workplace courses they give now are on a computer which I prefer. No pc instructor. Of course you have to give the answers they think are right and keep your disagreements to yourself. Example - a woman says to a guy in the workplace "you're the hottest man in the company." If he's unattached I don't see what the problem is but of course that's not the right answer. The quid pro quo is obviously wrong and abhorrent but if I understand the course material correctly she can take the boss up on his offer and frolic every Friday night and still file a claim. No gray areas in the course. Zero tolerance. The social pendulum always swings to the extremes and never stops in the middle.
DeleteHow does having library access help with your blogging? Do you use a PC with a human hand sized keyboard? That's what I use, along with a 23" screen. Used my daughter's smartphone the other day to take a photo, touch screen (real touchy screen),
ReplyDeletetook a dozen photos just picking it up. I could have butt solved the Covid, given a couple more minutes of fumbling.
I don't have WiFi at home so I use my smartphone. With the library desktop I can easily see and study my comment before publishing it. It's not just that though. My phone has that predictive spell check by Google, an ai program attempting to read your thoughts and write for you and it's fouled me up many times. I just like a desktop for serious work.
DeleteThat's a bummer. You may have to use part of your $1200
Deletecovidbonus an spring for your own desk top?
The harassment course at work we took about a year ago so don't know why they repeated it. Still being in the middle of a pandemic and being an essential workforce I thought they were gonna make us take a covid course (how is it spread? proper sanitation etc.). I saw a course on Boar's Head the holy grail of cold cuts but no class on corona. I guess don't harass someone is more important than catching the virus.
ReplyDeleteThere is a strong anti-mask movement here: City Council was besieged by 47 arguing constitutional grounds etc. So they decided to just strongly advise wearing a mask, based on the
ReplyDeletescience and medicine. If we become a hotbed of viral infection
things might change. Meanwhile Ammon Bundy, always on the lookout to bring his armed patriots to make a point and have fun, will invade the tiny burg of Nez Perce on Saturday. They
are hold his good friend, who was shot after opening fire with
a shotgun on deputies and State Patrol after running a traffic stop. Here in town it is peaceful, got up this morning, looked out the window and a quail was looking in at me. (could have been ol Ammon, ya know). As for a course in Covid, it doesn't seem cut and dried, there are some common sense things that we all know...and mgt. doesn't want to scare you into the streets.
Quite a fuss over Fall and school classes. I'd be satisfied it
it is local, some probably can, some can with special procedures and some may have to sit home and learn from the
teacher on TV..maybe advanced Boar's Head, it they are lucky.
Covid classes may not be cut and dried but they don't want you to upset an Eskimo.
DeleteBill Gates says it's ok by him if students return to school in the fall but you have to watch the older students. I'm glad that's settled. Meanwhile FB, Twitter and YouTube are making it up as they go along the general rule now being pulling stuff down they just don't like. Trump Jr. can't tweet. I'm always leery of topics where there's no room for disagreement. Strikes me as Orwellian. Pretty soon it'll be bland like the few topics you can discuss will be Taylor Swift and using masking tape for your ant problem.
ReplyDeleteIMO, fictional stuff should be restricted to Reddit, QAnon and E Harmony. How did Jr. Trump get himself banned?
DeleteData and information for me, so I don't browse those places, not on FB or Twitter. For entertainment I watch
Barney Miller, Mayberry RFD and Tucker Carlson.
Is Twitter cracking down on Antifa?
DeleteNot being factual as grounds for censorship? Is that in the Constitution? Whatever happened to you have the right to be wrong? Geez man I have to go through your long posting history here and delete stuff you posted that later turned out to be short on facts? I'm using the term "censorship" broadly here and don't mean to say Tylenol can slap on labels saying take five of these with a stiff drink and cause liver damage. You get my drift.
DeleteA needed postscript. I'm not talking about the narrow cases of libel/slander and shouting fire in a theater. Many people consider homeopathic medicine scientifically inaccurate so should we ban homeopathic literature. Christian Scientists claim they can heal themselves so should we suppress their views as well? Most people would say no it's part of living in a democracy but if FB and Twitter were truly consistent in their suppressive zeal they'd ban those accounts too. Question being how far do you take this?
DeleteOMG..me short on facts? I always try to use IMO or 'they
Deletesaid' when writing (got 14 patents and wrote a 150p booklet on explosives thermochemistry: although boring,
you can bet they are solid factual) I saw the Trump Jr.
vid and laughed it off. Presumably others were incredibly
impressed. I said to Mrs. "IMO, there might be a fine line
between open-minded and gullible". She's a psych major (so
a bit subjective) and replied, "You should replace gullible with stupid". I don't have FB or Twitter, so I
can't complain. But I have seen dozens of unmasked bullies
intimidate the City Council. Incredibly inane excuses, but
incredible hostility..and they got their way. I agree,
National Inquirer stuff entertains, but IMO, if taken for
God given truth we are in terrible trouble. Yes we do
try to protect those with different universes: here there
is an off-shoot biblical group that eschew doctors, medicine, clinics etc. and rely soley on prayer. Dozens,
maybe up to 30% of their kids die in great agony at home
while they pray over burst appendix, septicemia, untreated
compound fracture. So the state argues- "who has rights,
the parents or the kids?" IMO, if the little kid was conscious, she would claim historical right to life,
liberty, pursuit of happiness and can I please see a doctor about my pneumonia? So they argue, interfere, don't interfere, leave them alone etc. The one argument
you don't hear is "These respectable parents know far more about medicine than doctors and nurses". Ok, you
might hear it if you read Nation Inquirer, Twitter or FB.
"How far do you take this?" I have no idea..that almost
sounds like a frustrated Pontius Pilate, ya know?
BB... dozens of unmasked bullies? What the heck is going on when a Trader Joe's employee asks two entering the store to wear a mask and they physically attack him and 7 other employees, sending one to a hospital?
DeleteYou know the rules, if you don't want to wear a mask, while I may think you're stupid, fine, don't go in. But why go in and attack employees simply trying, under difficult circumstances, to do their job?
You're right about the level of hostility on this issue. I just don't get it.
Were Americans sheep during WW2 when we had to go along with government edicts, rationing and other, what I assume people today would call unconstitutional restrictions on our rights?
How would today's folks have fared back then with the current "the government is trying to control me" mindset?
As an essential employee I never personally confront non mask wearers. Proper approach - simply tell the mgr. on duty. On his or her end maybe call the cops first but that's open to judgement. It ain't my job to confront. Don't be some kind of covid hero.
DeleteIn one of my earliest retail jobs they told us never to confront a shoplifter directly. To update this think of the non mask wearer as equivalent to the shoplifter. If a gaggle of young men enter a store without masks on you already know there's something strange. Trader Joe's should train their workers in this regard.
DeleteUnmasked and hostile, I guess. Call me empathetic, but I
Deletecommiserate with the 'front line' worker, people to people
retailer or even nurses. If the store gets robbed, they probably get written up, if they tackle a shoplifter, they
may get fired. The front office types make the decision, but the big responsibility is with the underpaid under
appreciated 'little' guys upon which the entire corporate
structure depends. So, whenever I am impressed with some
clerk, waitress doing what I think is above and beyond,
I contact either their boss or corporate HQ. Sort of a
hobby. Supposed to be 110 here tomorrow. They say, "Yeah,
but it's a dry heat". I say "yeah, well so is a microwave." Any idea of what loving mother would name
her little baby "Reince"?
I'm thinking the folks that the Trader Joe's incident was a set up. Think about it... you think there are a lot of mask haters shopping at TJ's?
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DeleteI agree. If it's not borne out of ignorance and there are clearly mask signs posted a shopper not wearing a mask is already making an aggressive social statement. Trouble ahead.
DeleteAt this point in time BB we really should create you your own blog where you can vent. Call it The BB Idaho Rant Ring. Codename "Reince Priebus."
ReplyDeleteChuckling...
DeleteI'd like to know BB's bp readings. This could be therapy...or not.
DeleteDr. says normal for my age: on or off. Now BB's BP sounds like a good blog name. BTW, if you think I rant, you should hear my wife cussing out her laptop. If the Mormon
DeleteTabernacle Choir is social distancing, they must take up
an acre. Today's Covid Protocol question- who was that masked man? Beyoncé's full name is Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter: should I be going by 'B'? You been rioting
in front of the Yonkers County Library yet?
I may as well write 2020 off. Nothing is normal. Maybe I'll go into hibernation. Wake me up when they have a vaccine.
Delete2020 is the year of the Rat. In retrospect, I suspect it is the year of the bat. We are going out to dinner tonight. Odd thing, you have to wear a mask going in and coming out, but the eating and drinking thing can be done
Deletemaskless. Know an older guy, his son drove him over to Seattle for experimental project on stage 4 lymphnatic cancer. The research hospital paid for 3 days lodging and travel, but didn't mention that the hospital cafeteria was
Covid shutdown and all restaurants in Seattle are closed.
Luckily his daughter in law is a physician's daughter and
packed him and his son 3 days worth of meals to take with them. One of those potential headlines "patient receives
new protocol, gets cured, but starves to death". Yeah, 2020 is a bit on the unique side.
Or conceivably spike in colon cancer because of concern over covid or more Americans overweight because of stay at home orders. Weird tan lines on your face because you have to wear a mask on the beach.
DeleteWhat's the best way at the beach to tell a mask from a
Deletespeedo? The nuns sold the local hospital to a private company a few years back. That company was bought by another which was bought by a huge hospital corportation.
Runs very much topdown and profits take priority over
patient care. Nurse are holding a rally this weekend.
Several critical care things were shut down, many professionals quit. They hired the lady that ran United
Way this year, but she is having nightmares. You ever
thing a for profit hospital is an oxymoron? Not ranting,
just fuming. BP + 125/82 and appetite still too good.
"Former Republican presidential contender Herman Cain has died due to COVID-19. Cain was hospitalized on July 2 for COVID-19 symptoms; his last apparent public appearance was at Donald Trump’s Tulsa, Oklahoma rally two weeks prior, on June 20.
ReplyDeleteCain was a fierce public critic of mandatory mask efforts. The day before his hospitalization, he had praise for Trump’s no-mask policy a Mt. Rushmore event, declaring in a now-deleted tweet that “PEOPLE ARE FED UP!” Dunno,Z-Man.
I don't think Trump has an official no mask policy. He's been seen in public lately wearing one. Dr. Fauci now says maybe Americans should wear protective eyewear as well. He doesn't say how to prevent them from fogging up like hell.
DeleteTrump's Operation Warp Speed. Let's say there really is a vaccine for this in record time which would really be historic will the anti-Trump media at least give him partial credit for pushing this? Say what you will.
Not sure who came up with Warp Speed, but it is a good idea and many agencies involved. Trump gets credit if it
Deleteworks, having staffed and funded the project and we all hope it will.
Happened in New Rochelle NY just the other day. Guy going through the drive-thru at McDonald's told to wear a mask. Decided to go in and start trashing the place. Do we blame the wifi?
ReplyDeleteSure there are aspects of the enforced social weirdness you're bound to disagree with. There's one library in Westchester County with so many restrictions even though NYS is now in a kind of semi normal mode. That library has extremely limited hours, only five patrons can go inside at once and you have to make an appointment. No place to sit down and no wifi. As a mature citizen you simply decide to do something else with your time. You don't agree with everything and some things strike you as an overreach. If it amounts to anything take your anger out at the ballot box. What do we do mail it in?
ReplyDeleteAte out last night. Mostly older people, the usual bunch of antique fellows telling tall stories and a few grannies and granpas. No masks except us. Felt like an alien. This morning I
ReplyDeletewent to drugstore: everyone was wearing a mask. Is our tiny town
zoned into different Covid areas. Here in Idaho, there seems to
be a shame in wearing a mask, evidently identifies you as a democrat commie pinkie trouble maker. Hospital nurses really upset. Their nursing union is a subsidiary of the Teamsters Union. Will Jimmy Hoffa come? Will he wear a mask? We had mail in voting about a month and a half back-problem was they couldn't get poll workers, the usual old women we see every year. Seems sitting among strange voters in the Fair building
for 12 hours with Covid floating around was a bit more than they
thought they could handle. I kind of like voting in person, you
see your ballot go right into the box. Mail-in..heck could end up in Scranton or someplace....
Different covid areas...When I go for my daily walk and the usual people coming the other way (walkers, joggers and cyclists) some days almost everyone's wearing a mask. You get near to them and they mask up like you got the cooties. Other days same area and majority don't have masks on and pass you within six feet not a care in the world. Another time couple months back and went on a long walk and one area was the mostly maskless and on my way back most people wore masks. Covid zones, parallel universes, Repubs, Dems, dunno.
DeleteSome of my mail gets delivered to the wrong house and this happened on a somewhat regular basis in the past. We're supposed to trust this?
DeleteHurricane Isais bearing down towards Miami. Since they are already losing the battle to Covid, what's the best next step for them? Close the libraries?
ReplyDeleteApparently that's the key. Some old guy wants to sit down and rest his arthritic bones and read the WSJ at the local library and he might cause a pandemic within a pandemic.
DeleteAnother strange walking situation. I was walking the usual bike trail few weeks back and on my return walk decided to rest up on a totally empty bench. Older woman, total stranger came by and said "mind if I sit here?" and I waved her ok. Must've been 2, 2 1/2 feet away from me at best cheapie mask dangling from one ear. Checked my phone for a minute got up and resumed my walk back to the car. I think she was challenging covid or flouting the rulebook or...oh well. Doctor told me to walk.
ReplyDeleteLove In The Time Of Covid. Could be a movie.
ReplyDeleteHouse party in one of the counties in NJ led to a spike there. About 700 partygoers. I don't even know 700 people.
ReplyDeleteEerie thought: robots are immune to biological virus. Conspiracy
ReplyDeleteTheory: they observe, take notes and wait until the time comes
when everyone celebrates Singularity Day.
The synths/
DeleteHow ya gonna compete with chef robots? They work all three shifts, seven days a week and there is no robot
Deleteunion. Heck, they don't even need colonoscopies. Sounds a
bit dreary and boring to me, but I guess that is a human
weakness.....
& they don't have to take bathroom breaks. No logs in the toilet.
DeleteYou ever notice and wonder about stuff? Like that guy at the
ReplyDeleteCouncil meeting,"I will not wear a mask, it is a fascist plot,
a lie that we need protection from some phony virus. Protection, my eye. Same guy the next week, "I keep 25 loaded assault rifles for protection, me, my neighbors, the town really needs protection. Say a savage gang from Fiji shows up.
We need protection, and I will protect you, me and my arsenal.
Same guy..different protection?
But you can kind of say the same thing about the government. Mixed messaging. Churches have to limit their groupings. The rest of us have to limit our gatherings and most of us are doing our parts but BLM protests and demonstrations have been going on for over two months now. The government has implicitly sanctioned them while telling the rest of us what to do. Even Dr. Fauci tiptoes around BLM. I'm sorry but either the virus is serious or it ain't.
DeleteThe protesters seem to have their own masks though we don't know how many do or don't. Nor
Deletedo we have stats on the infection rate associated with the protests. S. Korea had their first Covid death the
very same day the US did. They immediately began contact
tracing and quarantining. We still haven't. They have a total of 300 covid deaths, we have 158,000. We can place
blame everywhere, Z-Man..but I'm still wearing mine.
I know most of the protesters seem to wear masks but by that logic that 700 person house party in NJ would have been ok by government standards if everyone had simply worn a mask. I'm simply talking about consistency BB, being on the same page.
DeleteGovernment standards? Like what, Fed, State, County, City
Deleteneighborhood. Everyone, gov't entities, businesses, academia, individuals are on different wavelengths. I
see no consistency, Dr. Z. I watched the SpaceX splashdown
earlier today and saw facemasks everywhere. Not sure if
Elon Musk insists, scientists just do it or they all think alike some cult. Off subject, we were watching one
of those heart rending ASPCA ads with the miserable dogs shaking with pitiful eyes and wife says " That's just awful, where do they even find them?' Informed her that
they get them at the animal actor studio, skilled thespian
dogs that can emote sadness really good, then go off set
have a shower and chase frisbees'. Whose side you gonna be
on that?
my wife says 'where do they find such
Where did that last part of sentence come from? AI is messing with my IQ..WTF.
DeleteLol. I have to turn away from those ads when they come on.
DeleteRe the masks I think the idea is not to wear a mask and then join some large swirling term of humanity even if they're all wearing masks. It's like with bc I'm all for it but it doesn't mean you have to have sex three times a day for 365 days and challenge the math ya know?
If library standards were in effect the whole planet would shut down.
DeleteSaw a Red Cross guy on the news explaining hurricane refuge
ReplyDeletecenters. He said that the Covid situation was addressed by assigning each individual 60 square feet. Seems like a square
of 7.75 ft sides. If everyone stays in their center, all will be
7.75 ft from anyone else. I figure if 4 squares abut and each
person moves towards a corner, the four of them can be oh, say
5" apart. Then, if each goes to their other outside corners,
those four could each snuggle with four others. In less than a
minute, 16 people will have been in close contact, and if the
people keep visiting adjacent squares, there would be dozens and dozens of close contacts. So, when is 60 sq ft really
distancing and where is Dr. Fauci on these peculiar metrics?
It also becomes a bit arbitrary. At 5 feet 11 inches the virus can have a field day but at 6 feet 1 inch it has to scram. I get the rough guidance but you can't live life that mathematically.
DeleteThat doesn't even address the call of nature. Does each person get a mini commode?
DeleteProbably just a rumor, but I heard that if Isaias repowers, gains strength and heads right towards Yonkers, the emergency areas will be the county libraries. What a silver lining....
ReplyDeleteThe traffic cams must be protected at all costs.
DeleteI haven't studied the trafficam locations
Deletein detail, but shouldn't you be doing some clever routing
and detouring? Tis embarrassing to be taken to court by
an unfeeling and mean camera, no?
You always go to your mailbox with trepidation.
DeleteI'd like to see more testing and data on the viral load. Are a few viruses breathed in less serious than say 59 times as many?
ReplyDeleteDoes that have a bearing on the disease progression and pathology? I would think that any mask might reduce the inhalation from a cloud of droplets and aerosols. Again, the
eye mucal infection sites..what percent of cases result from that, how would that pathology differ from inhalation? Should I
be starting a research team in the basement?
I think what you're saying is let's cover some angles of this we haven't covered before. Think outside the box maybe.
DeleteYou've survived the essential worker hardships, the Cuomo shutdown and the Yonkers secret police cameras. You need grab
ReplyDeletea couple pals and head north and get away from civilization, ya know?
That sounds excellent. I'm thinking there can't be too many rafters out there and you have to keep your distance. Where do you take a leak?
DeleteEither before you go, or as the bears do..mark a tree, ya
Deleteknow?
Imagining ahead a few centuries, we ponder the societal problems
ReplyDeleteof the earth's inhabitants- the robots. Although very successful, they are worried about the novel robots, the quantum
qubit brained types (the worrisome QQs). Not only super intelligent, the QQs are cloning themselves at a prodigious rate. And so the robot world ponders the 'doublearity' and the
inevitable fate of the common robots. From our limited view in
the zoo, we ponder as well.
BB Asimov.
DeleteWhat could go wrong?
To paraphrase Elisabeth Barrett Browning, Let Me Count The
DeleteWays...
The weather channel informs that Yonkers is out of power in some places from the strong winds. Fire up your portable generator, grab your food supply and double tie your facemask.
ReplyDeleteThis Isaias packed a real punch. The storm was significant. Driving home yesterday through Ardsley and I had to avoid many branches lying in the roads. Got to clean up some debris and branches in the back. No rest for the weary. Very very windy like 70-78 MPH at times. Scary. Then the sun came out.
DeleteHow many traffic cams blew down?
ReplyDeleteNone that I know of. Funny that. Must be fastened with Kryptonite.
DeleteGee, that's odd Department: When I retired 17 years back, they
ReplyDeletereplaced me with 3 people: lab mgr, explosives production mgr.
and chem researcher. In this morning paper I see that the prod
mgr, who had moved down to Remington for a few years and walks
his dog by quite often, was jailed for murder. He had gone to
check on his cabin up in the mountain woods, found an intruder
and (get this) grabbed his AR-15 and put the intruder under
'citizen's arrest'. As they plodded back to his truck, the guy
made a break. Ex-employee, dog walker fired a round into the dirt, then for some unexplained reason, shot the guy in the back
as he was running off. Makes me glad I'm old enough to get out
of jury duty
You also got a prophet Mom doomsday cult case going on in Eastern Idaho. I see it on CourtTV a lot.
DeleteI can't think of any reasons why I would buy a bottle of water...get a tattoo or plastic surgery to make me look like
ReplyDeleteJohn Travolta. Any advice?
George Carlin used to make fun of that. People walk around with their bottles of water like they have to stay constantly hydrated.
DeleteI typically smoke my pipe 7-8 times a day. I noticed when light up, the typical surrounding cloud and pondered aerosol
ReplyDeleteand Covid spread patterns. Since pipe smoke
mimics to some extent the computer models I've seen on YouTube,
should I be taking regular doses of chlorohydroxyquinone, even
though I have no Covid, rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus? Back in the day, you could get a pipe and can of
tobacco for around $10. These days, a can is $38 and if you can
find a nice pipe, it costs $85. I'm thinking most of that is sin
tax. Is pipe smoking a mortal, venal or original sin, theologically speaking? BTW, pipe smoke seems to be about the
same density as air: it follows the room drafts and slowly dissipates or sinks. The smoke rings tend to decompose into the
likeness of Pee Wee Herman's face.
I've always found pipe smoking to be too much work but maybe I'm not doing it right. My problem is keeping the tobacco lit. I'd like to get back into it. Any tips?
DeleteIMO, the pipe needs to be filled with tobacco and gently
Deletecompressed, not to loose, not too tight. Light the top all around the edges for a good start. As it burns down,
it leaves a column of light weight ash. So it needs to be
tamped once in awhile with the index finger (or a pipe tamper, or other object about the same diameter). It also important to puff often enough to keep the process going.
You should only have to relight maybe once per load, if at
all. New pipes can give you tongue bite: as the briar heats it builds a 'cake' lining which absorbs a lot
of local heat and the process is much kinder. I prefer
a thick bowl, which also absorbs heat better than a thin
one, but is heavier. Been puffing since 1959 and only set my coat pocket on fire once: walking in a blizzard, wind
was blowing sparks in my face so I put it in the pocket of my insulated coat. Pretty soon pocket was afire, the
faster I walked, the faster it burned..but if I walked slow it would take much longer..a loss-lose, Hobsen's Choice dilemma. Got home covered with snow and smoking like a an old locomotive. Wife laughed herself silly.
Can't do THAT with a cigar.
So what do you have a Dr. Grabow?
DeleteNo Dr. Grabow- not a very good pipe, just cheap. I buy mine from a place in Pennsylvania. I keep 8-9 in
Deletea rack and use one of each so the others sit and cool.
Got some Crown, which are pretty good and inexpensive as
pipes go, Petersons, Savinelli and Stanwell. Some up
to 25 years old (the older, the better they smoke). But
I get my tobacco over at Smoke & Suds which is run by a
tattooed lady and has every brand of beer on the planet.
Just Prince Albert for the last couple dozen years. My
all time favorite was Crosby Square, which went on every
one of my hundreds of canoe river trips. The stopped making it one day...curses!
Easier to smoke my cigars.
DeleteIs NY still stopping out of staters for quarantine? If a desperate tourist wanted to sneak in, and put a rubber raft
ReplyDeletein the Hudson on the wooded band beneath Palisades Interstate
Park on the Jersey bank and paddled across in the middle of a
dark night, where would the best place be to sneak ashore in
Yonkers? Shh..don't tell Cumomo.
Dunno why Cuomo and the other governors don't simply go with the traditional travel ban (you can't come here now turn around and go home). It's like trying to pick your nose with your elbow.
DeleteLike most other Covid inconveniences, banning tourists
Delete(especially) is really hard on a lot of business..like the empty casinos in Vegas. For some odd set of circumstances, my old Ammunition place has seen its stock go up 200% this year. Lot of new people buying guns out
of concern about riots, plus a lot of people are out of
work and have time to go to the shooting range, etc.
CCI-Speer..good stuff. They just got the largest ammo
contract ever ordered by Homeland Security and have had
most State patrols for years. We used to say our stuff
went to everyone from varmint plinkers to the GAU8 rapidfire spin gun in the Warthog jet. Had a guy one time
sent in an unfired primer, pissed off he had missed a trophy deer. I unwrapped the package and found that it
had been made by Winchester, a competitor. Fast and
efficient forensics, that one.
Do you have covid fatigue yet?
DeleteI've had it for months. Kind of grows on you. In a bad way.
DeleteI have dreams with covid themes to them now. Do I blame Deborah Norville?
DeleteA lot of 'professionals' have adapted to 'work from home'. Probably just a rumor, but I heard that a colonoscopy group,
ReplyDeleteDewey, Peake & Howe offers an at-home procedure. Their attractive ad offers "If you have a $350 gift card, prepay
now. All you need is a wrist camera, a wetvac and three bottles
of brandy or vodka. A private and secured video will be reviewed
in real time. Free w0 day warranty". Lemee know how it works.
I ate at a Wendy's yesterday. No indoor seating so we were all eating in our cars in the lot.
ReplyDeleteYou have your pipe problems and I have my cigar problems. Some cigars develop an uneven burn or ash and others go out too quickly. Some smoke too fast and others too slow. Once in a while you get a good one.
My wife won't let me smoke my pipe upstairs. She only permits cigars outside the city limits. Were you aware that it was too many cigars that did in Ulysses S. Grant and Sigmund Freud? (It's OK, they didn't bother 100 year old George Burns) Aren't cigars sort of pricey?
DeleteA recent study found that older people with macular degeneration often fall victim to Covid fatality. This peculiar
ReplyDeletedisease still has secrets, which have taken many years in other
infectious diseases. Warp Speed...
So how are people still dying in August? They're talking about a second wave when we can't even get out of the first wave.
DeleteBig biker convention coming up in SD. Least they could do is wear a bandana.
250,000 bikers in a really tiny South Dakota town:
DeleteUnreal, even if there were NO Covid. I ponder other
diseases (STDs) one could contract there.
SD currently being a relatively low infection state. I guess they want to bump up the numbers.
DeleteIt's almost like there's a conspiracy to act stupid.
DeleteUsed to cross the Great Plains every Summer to the Midwest. We would see hundreds of motorcycles in batches of 1 to 20 heading to the annual gathering of two wheelers. In the cafes, in the towns and at the motels. Never ask on of these guys (and an amazing number of married folks) about their 'bike', unless you
ReplyDeletegot a hour to spend. Interesting hobby: met a couple dressed in
black leather, all sunburned, windblown and bug covered. It was
their once a year fantasy. The rest of the time he was a surgeon and she was a law professor. Go figure....
Ever see "Easy Rider"?
Delete