Maybe an opportune time, with a lull in the action, for a brief primer on viruses, my POV only.  Viruses, as a biological species, are the most numerous "living" things on the planet.  And maybe anywhere else.  Except they may not be exactly "living," at least what we consider "life."  They consist, basically, of either a strand of DNA (double helix) or RNA (single strand), surrounded by a protein and sometimes a lipid coat.  That's it.  No brain, no head and no tail (as such), no heart (figuratively or literally), no lungs, no eyes, no hands, no feet, no legs.  No cells even - a hundred times smaller than a bacterium.  They don't eat, they don't sleep, they don't even move independently (except by some debatable mechanism that is probably artifact). Nothing that would make you in a passing thought think that they were alive.  So they probably can't die, since they are very arguably not alive.

They do only one thing, as far as we know.  They replicate their DNA/RNA strand.  And they can't even do that outside a living host cell - they're not even called viruses outside a cell, but virions.  They're like a defective Star Trek replicator, that can only replicate one thing - itself.  And sometimes imperfectly.  But they do that one thing astonishingly well, with an unbelievable variety of shapes and mechanisms designed for one purpose - to enter a host cell, plant or animal, subvert its function, and use its natural resources to build more DNA/RNA strands exactly like itself.  Then exit the cell, usually destroying it, to infect other cells, making more copies. And getting to the next host, through the air, through the ground, through exchanged fluids.  It's incredibly simple, yet incredibly complex.  Some virions are specific to a single species, a single type of cell membrane.  How does it "know" to do this? How did it evolve?  Why did it evolve?

No one knows how old they are - did single cells come first, or viruses?  A debate for decades, but now, very possibly, evidence may show they were the first.  The first "thing" that assembled bases from the primordial soup - or maybe the bases assembled themselves - to "create"...something else.  And maybe a few of those twisted bases, collectively at some time, aggregated into something more complex, and specialized functions, like building a cell wall to protect themselves.  And maybe their still-existing ancient relatives "learned" how to invade and prey on them.  We still don't know how life began - or begins - from a cooled ball of rock orbiting a star, with a little water on it and some chemicals floating around in it.  Maybe this was it.  Maybe - my own thoughts - they are us.

quote:

Originally posted by StarTraveler:
...Atlanta area Fulton County Georgia school employee...

I am not attempting to spin panic, I am simply sharing some truth based upon reported findings.

The problem with saying "Atlanta school employee," is that employee could live in a very large geographic area if said person commutes. This still holds true, however based upon it only being Fulton County at this time, chances are the employee is a resident of that county.

edited to add "area" for clarity

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

quote:

Originally posted by BansheeOne:
Italy just went full Rainbow Six.

ITYM full Executive Decisions, if you meant the Tom Clancy novel where President Jack Ryan shut the entire country down for non-essential travel.

Doc,

I was trying to explain the concepts in your first paragraph to my wife the other day without much success. Not sure I was successful in conveying the message that viruses have no goals, they "just are".

quote:

Originally posted by Patriot:
In Italy...

463 deaths from about 9000 confirmed cases.

Pretty high death rate.

They just closed the whole freakin country.

Is there a breakdown of age groups of the victims?

quote:

Originally posted by saigonsmuggler:
Is there a breakdown of age groups of the victims?

Kind of dated but from the Chinese deaths.

Over 60 / 70 / 80 and poor heathly really up the risk.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/...-and-conditions.html

So unless you're at risk it's not a devastating illness.

Those are also from China. I think our health care is a little better.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:
I swear, in my adult life, I've never seen anything as shameful and idiotic as the reactions I'm seeing to this particular coronavirus.

I just want to shake the whole earth and smack it across the face like that hysterical woman in the movie Airplane!

I hear you but: Mark Meadows chief of staff in self quarantining.

quote:

Originally posted by sigalert:

quote:

Originally posted by Doc H.:
SARS-CoV-2 could be fading back into the jungle from whence it came, at least in the place where it came from. We shall see.

Doc,

Any thoughts on the possibility of a second outbreak this fall?

Thanks for all your info.

The data I’m looking at shows a second outbreak this fall that is worse in intensity than what we are about to see in the next few months. SARS was contained essentially so there was no 2nd outbreak. Corona virus is now endemic and cannot be contained.

quote:

Originally posted by 220-9er:
What's the over under on when the hysteria will die down?

About 2 years from now. The doctors will know what they are dealing with and best practices to deal with it. A vaccination may be available, maybe. Most folks will have been infected and will move on from it.

quote:

Originally posted by bubbatime:

The data I’m looking at shows a second outbreak this fall that is worse in intensity than what we are about to see in the next few months. SARS was contained essentially so there was no 2nd outbreak. Corona virus is now endemic and cannot be contained.

There is no data on this virus. What you are seeing is speculation.

Just got home last night from a 7-day Southern Caribbean cruise beginning and ending in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The cruise line took extra measures in not allowing passengers or crew who had traveled from affected areas in Asia, nor anyone holding a passport from those areas. Health screenings were conducted at embarkation before cruise. They also upgraded disinfecting procedures ship-wide daily. Automatic hand sanitizer dispensers were located at every stairwell, elevator, restaurant/bar entrance, ship exit/entrance. Every passenger's hands were sprayed with sanitizer upon boarding the ship at every port (this has been a normal procedure for years).

Not a single person wore a mask, and we didn't see anyone exhibiting any symptoms of illness. People were not nervous about it.

Did see quite a number of people in the airport and on flights wearing masks. One guy boarded our flight with a mask and sat in a window seat on an empty row. No one sat on that row next to him (Southwest Airlines - no assigned seats). We decided it was the perfect strategy to getting your own row. LOL

Please let me start by saying "you're all full of shit." Probably me included. Then let me add "We're all gonna die". I know, you can't refute me because I'm right. All that said, sooner or later we'll come upon another pandemic. This one has as much a chance as the next. Only time will tell. So far, it wasn't the 'Bola. The weak spot on that was how hard it was to pass along.

Not so much in primitive cultures, where they kiss the dead and what not. But our culture has progressed to the point where they almost instantly quarantine dead bodies. They don't call it that, but they shovel them into body bags before anyone can even see them. That makes it harder for the disease to be transmitted. We're no friends of the bacteria or virus, we then refrigerate the stiff and before you know it, we put them underground, often in a concrete vault.

The current disease is smarter and allows itself to be communicated even before the carrier even knows he's passing it along. And for whatever reason, we don't like being locked away. We don't know much about this new one, like how it'll respond to high temperatures. So far we do know it doesn't like some of our decorative metals, like Stainless or Copper. No word yet on silver, but I'd guess it will even be harder for the virus to survive. So rule #1, eat off your good silver.

If nothing else, the weaker companies as well as the individuals (old fucks like most of us) will give in to it. As an aside here, I see the demorats have suggested all companies should pay sick leave to everyone. That'll put a bunch of companies out of business. Then the favor will be returned by all those folks being unemployed.

Never underestimate the evil democrats can do in the search of buying votes.

So yes, I'm concerned. I'd think anyone with any sense at all should be. I checked my hoarding supplies and discovered plenty of bourbon. Some grain alcohol. Don't need toilet paper, I'll use water. Guess we should add in some paper towels and paper plates. If they fail, we can use the good china. When we moved 10 years ago, we found Tomato soup that had been out of code. I'm guessing we might have more now. But I do need crackers. Gotta add them to the shopping list. Oh, and add on matches. Anyone here got enough of them? Didn't think so.

So I'll close by saying again "we're all goina die". I just don't know when. I've got enough ammo so it will probably be of natural causes.

Oh, and I have a question. How come the 'bola isn't bad because its named after the river by that name. But this isn't the Wuhan flu?

Last night after 10PM I got an automated call from the Avon, IN community school system. One child from a primary school about 2 miles from my house is infected. They shut down the entire district (10 schools or so) today and told the kids to do e-learning.

This afternoon another call, a second child showing symptoms, not sure which school. Entire system is shut down until March 20, after which is the scheduled two week spring break. So it's a month at home for all kids in this town.

My ex-wife works at IU Bloomington, which is terrified of students now on spring break coming back with the virus, so they told her to work from home for the next two weeks.

Overreaction? Yes, I think they should have closed the first school, tested all the children in the infected child's classroom, then expanded to the rest of the school as needed. The entire system is a bit much, as is the two week shutdown.

But we don't know how many siblings the first child has, what schools they go to, or much of anything about the second child. Perhaps there is a good reason, as they try to backtrack the steps of these two and see how many others may be exposed.

My company has already banned all commercial air travel except business critical to be approved by a business unit president. Company planes are still flying, but that probably won't last very long.

Didn't expect it to get this close to home this fast.

I am thinking the virus arrived stateside in late December or early January, with Christmas and Chinese New Year holiday travel by expats coming home from China and Chinese based in US going home to China and returning here. It's probably in a lot of places and we just haven't tested people to find it because many cases present like familiar viruses, and go away without major issue. It takes someone saying "I think I have Corona Virus" or a bad pneumonia to raise enough suspicion, then the testing beings, then we find what was already there, and act like it's spreading faster than it is, or did.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Lefty Sig,

More expensive than ammo:

Hand Sanitizer Is Flying Off The Shelves For $79 And $109 A Bottle At One NYC Hardware Store

https://www.zerohedge.com/heal...e-nyc-hardware-store

You know, in my youth we occasionally bought 151 proof internal sanitizer. It'd clean your guts good. If you don't want to pay outrageous prices, hit the liquor store for 151 or even Everclear at about 190. Cheap and they have other uses if not needed to clean your hands.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
the Chinese are VERY different culturally than us and would be perceived as being some dirty, nasty MF's by the western world.

I was just reading about a woman who had traveled and lived in China for years and gave one example that would horrify us; she was sitting in a nice upscale restaurant somewhere in China when this guy nearby just leans over in his seat, hocks up and spits a huge nasty loogie right on the floor. No one batted an eye apparently.

I've spent a total of a couple years of accumulated time in China. It's a mix of 3rd, 2nd, and 1st world depending on where you are, sometimes all three at the same time. Nowhere else have I seen a Lamborghini parallel parked on the street, passed by a dude on a motorized tricycle built from old spare parts with a makeshift wagon hauling cardboard or styrofoam from trash to recycling. For some reason, they won't use a simple drain trap on sinks so hotels always keep the drain plug down and a little water in the basin to keep the smell down.

Hacking is common, in the airport it's like surround sound. In general, noises are common - hacking, slurping, chewing, etc. The sense of manners is different. But there are things we do that they would be aghast at too. Eating with hands is a no no - always chopsticks, even with chicken wings, or more commonly chicken feet. But then it's OK to use your chopsticks to pick food out of the common bowls on the roundtable.

That said, for those of us who travel a lot, China is much much more preferable to India. You have never smelled anything the same as 100+ Indians on a plane rustling around and getting up after a flight.... my S.E. Asian companion at the time said in her broken English "Very smell! Very smell!". And you will never get intestinal illness in China as bad as you will in India if you drop your guard for a second and eat anything that touched tap water.

And if you look into the personal hygiene habits of some European countries (cough France cough) you might find the reason why they invented so many perfumes...

And this is in New York..not the most hygienic.

^^^^ He’s just tenderizing the fish.