Mostly Apolitical Thread for Discussing/Venting our Rational/Irrational COVID-19 Fears and Experiences in 2020

FL officials indicated they aren't reporting any COVID case data this weekend and presumably a few other states are in the same boat.

Can't wait til everyone freaks out at the 'spike' when a three day backlog gets reported all at once

it's barely locked down in London, there is another stage of "fully back to normal" in late June, but really almost everything other than nightclubs is already open, just some limits on capacity. I saw a headline that they were protesting "vaccine passports" and suspect they are general antivaxxer conspiracy theorist jerks.

Crusties thing checks out, I was having a coffee at a tattoo parlour in letchworth yday and the proprietor and his mate, v much in that demo, were talking about ppl they knew going down to London for it & trying to get them to go (they were saying the protests are a load of bollocks but I did get the vibe that they were truther/anti lockdown/antivax all the same)

like... punks? Maybe I don't know what this word means now

No, they're basically hippies.

The work colleague who told me she wouldn't get the vaccine hasn't got the dreads, the tattoos and the piercings but she is fundamentally a hippy. They're a menace.

I think those vape-shop owning tattooed + bearded types are part of that same anti-vax subculture, perhaps not as crustie but made from similar pastry.

Basically it's people who see the world through the lens of magic rather than anything provable. There's a part of me that would love to see them held down screaming by black-visored security operatives and forcefully vaccinated, probably not the best part of me that's thinking that I will admit but I can't lie.

:D @ Hyde Park

Hyde Park, Perth (1899)

Hyde Park, Chicago (1889)

Hyde Park, Los Angeles (1887)
Hyde Park, Kansas (1880s)
Hyde Park, Tampa (1880s)

Hyde Park, Glasgow (1874-1897)

Hyde Park, Boston (1868)

Hyde Park, Townsville (1860s)

Hyde Park, Utah (1860)
Hyde Park, Minnesota (1858)
Hyde Park, Vermont (1839)

Hyde Park, Sheffield (1824)

Hyde Park, NYC, New York (1810)

Hyde Park, Leeds (c. 1800)

Hyde Park, Sydney (1810)

Hyde Park, Long Island, New York (1715)

Hyde Park, London (1536)

ok you still can't do par breaks in h tags

tickets for the NHL playoff game in Raleigh are actually gettable and affordable but we're not ready to have the kids inside a big ol building with a bunch of adults yet :(

[ hyde ] park

lol

haa

Anti-Lockdown protestors in Westfield this afternoon. In somewhere that obviously wasn't locked down, at least not until their protest caused it to be.

Just saw this on youtube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdBGyzKcwX8

This is quite confusing. There are some people outside that want to go in, and then some other people inside that want to go out. And some of them are protestors and others are just shopping

Just got back from our trip to the Northwoods of Wisconsin. The region itself is overwhelmingly Republican, but the mask stuff was pretty reasonable. That is, a mix of those with and without, but nowhere did it feel weird or uncomfortable to don or doff. Most consistent mask wearing was among the small set, kids either too young to be vaccinated or too young to have had more than one shot at this point. The event itself (a three times rescheduled bat mitzvah, of all things, on a lake at a decommissioned summer camp where ... actually, the whole thing is a fascinating story, beginning with the parents, a loud Jewish mom from Long Island and a quiet non-Jewish creative writing teacher born and raised in a small town in Wyoming, now residing in the Northwoods, but that's all for some other thread) was supposedly mostly populated with double-vaxxed folks, with a smattering of single vaxxed and a few unvaxxed (for various reasons) locals scattered among them. The ceremony was outside, and the party was in a big tent, so I suppose there was some risk, but more or less minimal for a large gathering.

Anyway, it all felt pretty good, psychologically, to spend a long more or less carefree weekend with folks, strangers and friends alike, for the first time in forever.

Other anecdotal data from a backyard gathering last night from a friend who owns a few restaurants and concert venues is that for all the guidance the city and state has offered here, places like his are more or less on their own in terms of safety precautions at this point, and even if they weren't, he said the vibe and attitude among those in his industry, vaxxed and not alike, employees and guests alike, is that covid is over and it's time to move on. (Semi-related, he said the labor shortage is real and significant, and that those he's hired as everything from cooks to bartenders have been immediately using the job to bargain for better paying jobs for other places similarly desperate for employees, even when he offers higher pay or cash bonuses, but that's another story as well).

Another take from another friend last night is that with all the unknowns about variants and fall outbreaks and whatnot, those vaxxed (like all of us in the friend group) might as well try to enjoy what we can this summer, because it's easy to see it all getting shut down again in an instant.

Staff have gone mask optional (if vaxxed) at Trader Joe's! That's the biggest corner I've seen turned yet.

The question is, do they have to give their manager some documentation that they're vaccinated?

JiC where'd you go? we were at Lake Tomahawk this weekend. definitely noticed a lot less Trump signs than last time.

Virginia liquor stores just went "mask optional if vaccinated."

Was driving on a local freeway a week ago and a pickup truck went by in the fast lane with a big 'TRUMP' flag still flying. It was tattered and heavily faded. Hadn't seen one in a while, but this is the Portland metro area.

oops! no covid content in that one. anyway, Oregon's case rate rose sharply in March, plateaued in April and fell slowly in May. It doesn't feel like the virus has stopped circulating here, but has only been impeded in its steady march. I've only dispensed with masking up when outdoors - or at home.

my LIBRARY is now OPEN, want to bring them cookie baskets or something, covid's a little bitch, what

JiC where'd you go? we were at Lake Tomahawk this weekend. definitely noticed a lot less Trump signs than last time.

Wow, that's exactly where we were! The family has roots there (the grandpa even built one of the camp cabin). It was chilly most of the time, but we had a blast.

I've only dispensed with masking up when outdoors - or at home.

― What's It All About, Althea? (Aimless)

aimless btw i thought i saw you walking on a path by kruse way like a week ago, but all i have to go on are ancient wdyll's that i barely remember! anyways, hi!

covid sucks! (just making this thread-appropriate)

(Semi-related, he said the labor shortage is real and significant, and that those he's hired as everything from cooks to bartenders have been immediately using the job to bargain for better paying jobs for other places similarly desperate for employees, even when he offers higher pay or cash bonuses, but that's another story as well).

Good that people are advocating for themselves, imho.

considering cheap business owners are lobbying for the end of the $300 federal unemployment and have succeeded in doing so in several states, they can go fuck themselves

sensible moderate real estate guy larry hogan is ending it in MD july 3

god bless america

there's no such thing as a "labor shortage" you're just not paying enough

anyways, hi!

hi, clay. it's possible, I sometimes walk over that way on Saturdays when the office bldgs are vacated.

and yes, covid sucks!

stats are jacked up due to the number of states that didn't report on Memorial Day, but COVID hospitalizations are below 20,000 now, and the 7-day average is below 3,000 now. it's hard to tell until this week ends what case numbers are at, but seems pretty clear that the 7-day average is either already below 20,000 or will be soon (officially it is, but I feel like it's artificial due to abnormally low case counts due to holiday).

Infection rate 2.6% as of last week, down from 2.9% the week previous. Deaths probably below 400 soon (if not already - again, jacked data). NYT reporting no evidence of spike from last month's new CDC guidance, yet (though honestly, such a spike would be much more gradual than immediate as it's not the same as a state that is completely closed opening back up, so obviously too early to declare victory).

Vaccination data is also jacked due to Memorial Day but it seems to be slowing yet again, but we're at about 51% of the entire US population with one shot, 41% fully vaccinated.

there's yr quick hit stats, also Bryce Harper struck out 5 times

Numbers look incredible, which is promising and much appreciated good news. My state announced that all students must be back in person in the fall, so our district had to backtrack and withdraw the option for any virtual learning next school year.

On one hand, I do get it, we have to plan for schools to be back in person at some point, especially given the mental health issues a lot of kids are suffering by not being able to be around other kids and socialize.

But, at the same time, I do have some hesitancy about being this gung-ho and insistent that all kids must be back in person, especially when virtually every elementary school student in the country is still ineligible for the vaccine. And based on the timing reported thus far, it seems nearly certain that school will be back in session before emergency use is authorized for the next age group. I know the data and science both show that young kids are far less likely to suffer severe consequences from COVID, but it's uh, not zero (and I think the data would be cold comfort for the parents of the roughly 300 kids in America who have died from it). Not to mention recent reporting about kids in Brazil getting hit really hard right now.

it's really a difficult situation. every teacher I know hates the hybrid virtual/in-person model simply because it's so difficult to do at the same time, and I'm sure parents don't like it any better, but at the same token, I'm not sure pulling the plug on it entirely is the right move, either. especially since a lot can change between now and then.

I definitely know of a non-zero number of local teachers who died from COVID too. I didn't know them personally but they were friends of friends, and none were elderly.

Yeah, I can't imagine the strain on teachers trying to teach to both an in-person audience and a remote audience. Our son's teacher has been amazing and seems to hold everything together expertly, but I'm sure it takes a Herculean effort behind the scenes.

Neanderthal otm, though, it seems like if we have learned anything from the last 15 months or so, it's that we should not be making definitive, final plans one way or the other just yet.

(btw Neanderthal - my ilxmail is connected to an old account I don't often check, I only just saw your message last night and thanks, no worries at all!)

I feel like a worse teacher every week; hybrid is really taking a toll on me and the students.

Realized the other day that I've gone from having to prep 2-3 things per class (lesson plan, materials and maybe homework), to having to prep four things (lesson plan, full slide show of everything you're going to do/say, online resources, homework for asynchronous time), to having to prep five things (all of the above plus activities for the in-person students to do during asynchronous time.) Turns out five is too many for my brain to handle; I can't have all that and interesting lessons that use all the available tech in the best way, so I always feel like I'm failing at something.

FWIW, during the 2019-2020 period there were if I saw correctly a record 188 pediatric deaths from the flu, but that is still pretty small, and pediatric covid deaths were even lower than that over the same period. There have been between 250-300 pediatric deaths from covid to date, on the high end, but of course, all those numbers take into account all kids 0-17, half of whom can now be vaccinated, which lowers the risk even further. You're all right that things can change, but that will always be true.

Total national covid numbers look good, but I also heard something on the radio about covid testing being down. So it's possible the numbers are higher than they appear, though if serious (reported) illnesses are down it may not matter much.

There have been between 250-300 pediatric deaths from covid to date, on the high end, but of course, all those numbers take into account all kids 0-17, half of whom can now be vaccinated, which lowers the risk even further. You're all right that things can change, but that will always be true.

That's a little generous with "half", since it's only 12+. And again, I get it, numbers are trending in the right direction and hopefully we will be in a much better position by the end of the summer. And while it's certainly an unintentional side effect of how things are progressing, it's starting to feel a lot like, "welp, sorry kids under 12, the world is moving on whether you are at risk or not, deal with it".

Also, admittedly, I'm a little touchy about it because I'm sick of seeing shit on Twitter and (mostly) Reddit along the lines of, "if they aren't vaccinated yet, it's a personal choice and fuck 'em, let 'em die"

Testing looks quaint to many people, redolent of another time. A good friend genuinely asked, "why?" when I said last week I was getting tested despite my two jabs. I said, "It's one building away on campus and I want my evidence that my behavior isn't dangerous to me or others."

Our campus just announced that, starting in the fall, unvaccinated folks will have to test daily instead of twice a week, as they've been doing up to now. I assume this is the carrot to encourage some of the hesitant.

We can't do it. Thanks, DeSantis!

In exactly three weeks, I will teach my first fully face-to-face course since spring 2020. Masks recommended, not required.

Numbers look incredible

national covid numbers look good

Melbourne has just extended their lockdown to two weeks after the state's infection numbers rose by six to 60 total.

the entire country is only about 9% vaccinated, so that seems like a wise measure in that case.

what about the mice menace?

It’s closer to 2% fully vaccinated, but more importantly the feds have completely bungled vaccinating the aged care sector, where most of the deaths were last year. Coverage was promised by Easter but there are care homes that haven’t been visited by vaccination teams yet and staff have been left to twist in the wind. Disability care is in an even worse state.

A hearty fuck you to Scott Morrison and a bigger one to Josh Frydenberg for all the people struggling through lockdown with no wage support.

Well just after that I heard the message from the feds ‘we don’t want to provide financial support, because we don’t want to incentivise states to go into lock down’.

FUUUUUUCK YOOOOOUUU

the entire country is only about 9% vaccinated, so that seems like a wise measure in that case.

remember how the US took measures to stop new variants entering and spreading when the population was 2% vaccinated? good times

No, and we didn't lockdown properly in 2020 either. Nor did we take appropriate measures in any of the other phases.

But cases are almost to the point of exponential decay here now