I have to assume the idea is to get this under control before NJ is as bad as NY. People are clearly not taking this seriously.
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Same everywhere. Fault of politicians, the message wasn’t clear. A few days ago, the politicians weren’t taking this very serious. Suddenly the tone and policy change.
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Here it’s gatherings of over 50 people. But restaurants and bars are now closed as well–drive-through, pickup, curbside and delivery only. I worry about the folks who rely on the hospitality industry. Philly has had two major conferences cancelled, which trickles down to hotels, airlines, restaurants, etc. Mom (who lived through the great depression) had a good idea to send a check to the local food pantry.
Local utilities have suspended shut-offs and late fees and there’s a movement to end evictions and foreclosures. But I wonder . . . with the loss of tax revenue from suspended business and payrolls, will we be paying for this crisis for years to come?
ETA: And yet the city of Philadelphia stays open (minus its schools).
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LOL. That’s interesting, because in my circle it’s being called the “Boomer remover” - anecdotally, most of my friends’ parents are not self isolating. Do wish everyone would take this more seriously.
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It’s rumored that due to the extreme loss of tax revenue in Asheville, we will be paying higher property taxes to make up for it.
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100%. Here in the US until a few days ago Trump was all “this is no big deal! The media and those absurd democrats!” His tone on Thursday (?) was very, very different.
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I liked There’s an Epidemic That’s a Bigger Threat Than the Coronavirus, and it’s on topic!
From the last few paragraphs.
“So, OK, coronavirus “wins” for speed, but really deserves far less preferential respect than it gets. Flu warrants far more. Diet, willfully engineered to put profit ahead of public health while evoking no apparent outrage, warrants far more still.”
This isn’t really the place for it, but I take issue with a lot of the numbers cited in that story, and some of the reasoning. Much of the data and the overall picture it presents are from the end of February. I fear it’s misleading and minimizing. COVID-19 is estimated to be between 10 and 30 times more deadly than the flu, and much more contagious. AND we have a flu vaccine. Better than/worse than debates aren’t that helpful. They probably cause more harm than good. We need to slow the pandemic.
Yes, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease are serious problems and they’re killing us in the long term. But we also already know this. People aren’t making lifestyle changes, and our government doesn’t prioritize environmental protections and economic justice that are factors. But many Americans, especially aged 60+, are not prepared for COVID-19’s mortality rates of 4-20%. At the low level of testing and social distancing we’re seeing, most experts project we could see between 50% and 70% infection rate in a population of 330 million. The math is staggering (1.5million-ish deaths as a reasonable worst-case).
I personally feel like an article like this, published at this time, has the effect of promoting “business as usual” and reassuring folks that they don’t need to change their behavior now to slow the spread because “risk is low.”
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That’s probably why I liked it!
I wonder if it’s restaurants that don’t normally do much takeout business…there could be a shortage of that stuff as every restaurant tries to preserve some business with takeaway ordering
Except that it’s not takeout containers that people are buying, it’s paper plates and cups. Unless I’m getting a slice to go, I expect my takeout food to be sealed up and bagged.
The UK government has just announced new advice. Note, this is “advice” with no legal penalties for ignoring it. Which may or may not have an effect. As expected, folk with compromised health, such as Mrs H and me, are advised to be “largely shielded from social contact”, for three months. Don’t blame me for any ambiguity in that - I didnt vote for 'em. But, effectively, it means we should not move in places where there are others - shopping, restaurants, visiting friends, etc. It’s not the “house arrest” that we first feared and will be able to take walks. Further details for us fromm the government later in the week, with the “advice” coming into effect at the weekend. For everyone else, there are significant shifts in advice.
Here are the key points:
everyone in the UK is now being advised to avoid "non-essential" contact with others and "unnecessary" travel
people are also being asked to work from home "where they possibly can", and avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and social venues
people are now being advised to stay at home for 14 days if they, or anyone in their household, has either a high temperature or a "new and continuous cough"
people in at-risk groups will be asked within days to be "largely shielded from social contact" for 12 weeks
the UK is to scale up coronavirus testing in the coming weeks
from tomorrow, mass gatherings will no longer be provided with emergency workers
(Sorry - that extract looks awful - must be something to do with the formatting of my cut & paste from the BBC website)
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That’s good, seems reasonable. We are self isolating but definitely taking advantage of walks around the neighborhood and playing on empty playgrounds, with plenty of hand sanitizer applied. Got to keep sane, after all 
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Maryland update: On top of aggressive action last week, Governor Hogan is closing all bars, restaurants, theaters, and gyms. Restaurants are permitted to do take-out, curbside, delivery. My inbox is flooded with email from local restaurants who normally don’t do any of those things that suddenly are.
The Wifeacita and I both had flu shots in September but in early January she was running 103.5 fever with a diagnosis of influenza type A, she’s ok now.
The American Veterinary Medical Association has issued recommendations for pet care during the pandemic. To get to the pdf, search “avma covid-19 faqs for pet owners”.
I have all I need to stay housebound for weeks, but had an idea for better space utilization in long lines to get into or check out of stores. Line up in pairs, back to back but not touching. To advance, take a step sideways. This way you are not breathing directly on anyone, so if the next pair is closer than 6’, less of a risk. The line will be twice as wide but half as long, which is helpful in the case of outdoor lines in unpleasant weather.
Two weeks ago, I had day surgery at a different location of the multi-site hospital where I get my medical care. As I was being prepped, a nurse swabbed betadine in my nostrils, explaining that it was to prevent infection. Perhaps there was already Valium in my IV, because the question in my brain never made it to my mouth: Was this standard at their location, or a new system policy for Covid-19? It didn’t irritate, and many hours later, when I blew my nose for the first time since being swabbed, there was no staining. At the risk of triggering a run on Q-tips, this is something to consider if you must be in close public contact.
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Husband and i also had the enhanced flu shot and then strain A but a rather light version compared with the same strain our son’s family “enjoyed”, and it was one of their cherubs who shared with us.
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Yikes, that’s scary. It’s possible that without the vaccine, it could have been even worse! Glad you guys are well now.
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