If you've got that many people driving the "wrong way" down the highway you're on, you've gotta start wondering if perhaps you are the one going the wrong way...

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
If you've got that many people driving the "wrong way" down the highway you're on, you've gotta start wondering if perhaps you are the one going the wrong way...

Nature's way of telling you to slow down....

I had a single extra drink of whiskey tonight.

Doin' my part.

quote:

Originally posted by Doc H.:
A more apt analogy would be "A maniac is driving the wrong way on the highway you are on, in a red sports car. ..."

And yet this thread is about the red sports car, not the blue trucks. If it had been, “Let’s talk about all the things that we should worry about,” then the blue trucks might indeed have been worthy of more discussion than the red car, but the red car was the original subject. Plus of course, most people aren’t worried about those blue trucks because dangerous or not we’ve learned to live with them without allowing them to disrupt our lives in the same way the red car is. In addition, there is still some question whether it’s blue mopeds versus a red semi. That’s another reason why some people are not just scoffing at the wrong way vehicle as unimportant.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
If you've got that many people driving the "wrong way" down the highway you're on, you've gotta start wondering if perhaps you are the one going the wrong way...

"Oh, he's drunk. How would he know where we're going?"

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
If you've got that many people driving the "wrong way" down the highway you're on, you've gotta start wondering if perhaps you are the one going the wrong way...

"Oh, he's drunk. How would he know where we're going?"

Haha, nice reference.

I had breakfast a few mornings ago with a compadre that got stuck in South Korea for four days. He said everyone's been avoiding him like the plague. His wife doesn't want him home until 14 days has elapsed, and he's been tested, and he probably will need to be tested before he can re-enter the US. Another co-worker commercialed in last night from Chicago; he said the flight was a ghost town on the 777.

While the mortality rate is relatively low, quarantine and the inability to go to work can have a serious impact on a lot of people; get sick and you may have mild symptoms, but you may also have job issues. If I get sick outside the US, getting back could be a problem on several counts: I'm not going to be allowed back in, and I won't be allowed on flights headed back...and I won't be allowed in most countries, either. If I do end up quarantined, regardless of severity, it can get expensive, fast.

Much as folks would like to believe this is a domestic conspiracy against the president, it's a global issue and the economic ramifications are quite significant outside US borders. A lot of countries are taking it seriously; it's not just about getting sick and dying, but about getting sick and the economic impact that it's having across the globe.

There's a lot of sky-is-falling panic, but the effects are very real.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:
There's a lot of sky-is-falling panic, but the effects are very real.

The effects of panics often are quite real.

The press hyping this is the equivalent of yelling fire in a crowded theater because you think there might be a fire there in a few weeks or months while right now all there is are a couple people smoking.

quote:

Originally posted by Fenris:

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:
There's a lot of sky-is-falling panic, but the effects are very real.

The effects of panics often are quite real.

The press hyping this is the equivalent of yelling fire in a crowded theater because you think there might be a fire there in a few weeks or months while right now all there is are a couple people smoking.

Doesn't mean I won't take notice of the exit signs when I get to my seat. Being stuck in a theatre during a fire sounds like a real bummer. So two seconds to scan the room isn't a bad idea.

Let me be clear. I do not think that the WHO/CDC reaction is improper, -- quarantines and monitoring, and testing, and travel bans during this breakout period etc etc.... These are not bad things. I think the market jitters are to be expected for the supply chain impacts etc.

But I do think that as humans, it is important to understand that while new, this is also very similar to other diseases we coexist with today. The death rate in the epicenter is skewed for other reasons, and it's being used to fuel the panic. It will not be anything like that in the U.S.

Keep your eyes on Columbus Ohio today and the Arnold Sports Fest. On Tuesday the governor and the mayor reached an agreement with the promoter that said no spectators except at the finale on Saturday night. The promoters last night said they ARE going to admit spectators after they found out that basketball, hockey and other conventions would continue as normal. It is the athletes arriving from over 80 countries that caused the ban on spectators. Apparently they are testing the athletes at the airport. No mention regarding the other 200 passengers flying with them. Major inflow of money to Columbus. I guess my thought is if there is that if the risk level is raised that significantly then we shouldn't let those people off the plane in the first place.

Congress Reaches $7.8 Billion Deal to Fight Coronavirus (is this really needed?)

Congress has reached an agreement on Wednesday to provide $7.76 billion in funding to fight the coronavirus outbreak in the United States, according to reports.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) and House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) lead the negotiations that will make available three times the $2.5 billion requested by the Trump administration. The figure is modestly lower than the $8.5 billion proposed last week by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).

“This should not be about politics; this is about doing our job to protect the American people from a potential pandemic,” Shelby said in a statement. “We worked together to craft an aggressive and comprehensive response that provides the resources the experts say they need to combat this crisis. I thank my colleagues for their cooperation and appreciate President Trump’s eagerness to sign this legislation and get the funding out the door without delay.”

The Alabama Republican added that Congress will move expeditiously to pass the bill for President Trump to sign.

On Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence, who the president tasked to lead the administration’s response to the coronavirus, met with congressional Democrat and Republican leaders to discuss the ongoing effort. Earlier in the day, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, testified before a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on the illness that originated in Wuhan, China.

As of Wednesday, the virus has killed nine people and over 100 more people have been infected.

https://www.breitbart.com/poli...o-fight-coronavirus/

All problems are solved by throwing money at them, per the democrat socialists.
But with that much money, there should be plenty of money for President Trump to finish the Wall to protect us from the virus... right?

Caught a piece of the today show this morning – they were going through detailed examples of things you should be stockpiling now.

That’s reasonable.

I’ve started saving the three catalogs per day we receive rather than getting into a gun fight at Costco for some toilet paper.

OK, this is really hitting home now. Starbuxx is suspending use of your own mug, you have to be served in a paper cup. They still gave me the cup discount, but what of the trees that will now die that didn't have to die?

I can't really drink through my respirator anyway, but it's the principle of the thing!

^^^

You couldn't pay me to get on a cruise ship right now...

the first fatality reported in California appeared to be the same patient - a 71-year-old man - whom state officials had said recently traveled aboard a cruise ship called the "Grand Princess". The ship, which was ironically on its way to dock in San Francisco at the time, was ordered to remain offshore. According to USA Today, officials confirmed on Wednesday that the ship will not return to port until testing of everyone on board can be carried out.

And just like that, the US has its own cruise ship emergency, though it appears authorities are learning from the mistakes made by Japanese health officials during the 'Diamond Princess' fiasco (to be sure, the US clearly violated quarantine by transporting sick passengers back to the US).

Gov. Newsom said the state would scramble to test the passengers as quickly as possible.

"We will be able to test very quickly... to determine if these individuals that are symptomatic just have traditional colds or the flu or may have contracted the COVID-19 virus," Newsom said.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: chellim1,

I really feel bad for anyone in the cruise, restaurant, hotel or travel industry right now because I think it's about to get really rough for a lot of people in that line of work.

Companies are restricting and even banning non-essential travel now and it's got to have a huge ripple effect on those industries. My FIL was due to go to this huge medical IT conference called HIMSS20 in Orlando next week and so many companies like Microsoft and Amazon are pulling out it's very likely to be cancelled. His company just informed him he's not allowed to go now.

One big unknown is the General Election in November. What happens if no one is able or willing to venture out in public to vote?

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
What happens if no one is able or willing to venture out in public to vote?

Bigger question: What if there is no one there at the polling stations because they don't want to be exposed to 100's of mouth breathing voters?

The real issue will be people not showing up for work in jobs that have high exposure to others. Would you?

Somewhat related to Guppy's post above, I need to have a CAT tech come and look at a couple things. He just returned Sunday night from a 10 day trip to Italy and Greece with his high school senior daughter. Some of the pics he posted had people in the background with masks on.
I have to admit I am not interested in being in the engine room or closed flybridge with him at all.
I (only half jokingly)told him to bring his own gloves and mask since he was coming from a hot zone and spent how many hours in a tubular aluminum petri dish to get home.

On another note, at Wal Mart this morning as I was walking by the cleaning aisle I noticed an employee there checking the shelves. All the Clorox and generic sanitary wipe items were gone. I remarked about that to her. She said they've been told don't even bother trying to order more because they weren't available and the cleaning products that were left were all they would be getting. same for ordering TP.
I did go get 25 bottles of peroxide for a 2 month supply for flushing the AC condensate drains on the boat I run:
1. Because they had them and
2. They were on an end cap and I didn't have to get on my knees to get them off the bottom shelf.

And finally, I just read we have a presumptive positive case in Santa Rosa County. A 70 year old man, "world traveler", who is unable to respond to questions.