fired ?
Hi Billioneuronman:
Dr. Google says that the human brain has about 86 billion neurons. Can you perhaps get a refund? 
Please laugh…this is meant to be good-humored fun.
If you can access this article behind The Economist paywall, it’s worth reading. The American South is crippled with dire co-morbidities that are driving virus numbers higher at three times the rate of national increases elsewhere: grinding poverty with lack of health benefits, especially among minorities; lack of rural health care, especially for the already-unhealthy and the aged; and a higher proportion of incarcerated citizens, most of whom are also minorities. (I would add to these disadvantages moronic state legislatures hellbent on reversing decades of social progress to achieve a mythic antebellum state of entitled idiocy.)
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2020/04/21/covid-19-is-spreading-to-americas-south-with-unnerving-speed
lots more people in NYC are dying, and the politics in NYC is nothing like the Dixieland you referred to. I hope more people will leave their preconceived political bias behind and view the virus epidemic as objectively as possible. Try to seek out the truth, not confirm your previously held beliefs.
Another non-peer-reviewed study, but might be a prequel:
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/shocking-study-finds-coronavirus-mutations-are-much-deadlier-original?utm_campaign=&utm_content=ZeroHedge%3A+The+Durden+Dispatch&utm_medium=email&utm_source=zh_newsletter
Hi Chris,
I really enjoyed your video that outlined the methodological and reporting flaws of the recent study out of Stanford. In particular, I didn’t care for the way that they used strong language to reinforce their conclusions–they should be saying things like “indicate” or “suggest” and qualifying conclusions with “possibly.” This comment is for you to stay consistent to your recommendations. COVID-19 has not been around long enough to know if damage is “lifelong”. It can be said that the damage is “substantial”, “lasting”, “catastrophic” or “unlikely to heal”. However, I think it is objectively uncertain whether the damage can be unequivocally characterized as “lifelong” or “permanent” at this time.
Respectfully,
Chris G.
From the email Chris received above.
Every year when I do my taxes, I have to swallow again when I see that I pay 60% in income tax. Note, lower salaries pay a lower tax in %.
But, my healthcare is for free.
My kids get good education for free.
If I am sick or my kids, I can stay at home and get paid.
Many entrepreneurial spirits drive this country forward in an amazing speed. The educational system is preparing kids to think for themselves.
Again paying 60% in taxes is technically not free. It is a forced collection by government decree not a choice. If people were really preparing kids to think for themselves they would already understand that. Some people are happy with giving the government total responsibility for their well being, health care and education then have at it. Logically, do not think its "free" someone has to pay for it.
Personally I do not trust big central governments as I have seen their big waste , big ignorance, big corruption and big brother authoritarian. Society thankfully is evolving toward decentralization. As an example, I trust Peak Prosperity and other independent sources of information a whole lot more than the tax funded CDC, WHO or "essential" big corps.
What do you make of this? Research sponsored by the Altria Group?
“The study at a major Paris hospital suggests a substance in tobacco – possibly nicotine – may be stopping patients who smoke from catching Covid-19. Clinical trials of nicotine patches are awaiting the approval of the country’s health authorities.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/22/french-study-suggests-smokers-at-lower-risk-of-getting-coronavirus
When you smear an entire region and it’s people you remove any legitimacy to any claims you are making…and end up looking like just another bigot.
Hi LesPhelps,
If you don’t mind me asking - how much do they pay? I often think the reason is because they are paid so little that it’s basically near being indentured servants / exploited and that is why Americans are not wanting to work the jobs. But I’ve never seen what actual wages are. Thanks.
Easy, don’t eat meat or dairy. 80% of the logging is to make room for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), to support the increasing world demand for meat and diary.
You can easily confirm this with a bit of internet searching and reading.
LesPhelps, I was concerned about farm workers, too. Trump was asked by the press if farmer workers were included in the immigration ban and he said he was glad the question was asked, and, no, farmer workers would not be banned from entering during the ban.That's possibly true, but adding more fuss and bother to the border situation will not help. In 2019, our green card workers arrived two weeks late, due to the mess that already exists at the border. Even if they are supposed to be allowed through, in theory, in practice they may not get through, at least in a timely fashion. Planting and harvest are all about timely coordination with the season, the weather and the crop. When your help doesn't arrive, you don't just wait for them.
and soy…
Linda
nice
What mathematically does flatten the curve mean to you?
I am biased because I work in a large warehouse with hundreds of people. I have no doubt I will get the virus. But here is what I am really asking…
If we flatten the curve, do you really think less people will the the virus? I thought flatten meant same amount of people will get sicker, but over a longer time period.
With warehouses open and everybody going to Walmart for daily excursions… I don’t see how we can prevent the spread. Slower yes, but prevent. Not if people aren’t following the rules.
Thanks guys!
In light of the conversations about caring for mom and dad and what to be aware of as we are thinking about how to protect our loved ones, I’ve run across a new wrinkle that others may also want to be aware of. If this is the worst that happens to us through the Covid-19 debacle, I will be grateful! I know many people are dealing with far worse right now.
My mom and I got some unsettling news today about her car, a 2008 Prius. It made a very loud noise when we tried to drive it back in mid-March, but we could not get it looked at by our trusted local auto mechanic until now, because everything has been closed.
He said that someone had stolen the catalytic converter! He showed me where the pipe had been sawed off and the wires ripped out. I was shocked! I asked how? He said they can come in the middle of the night, jack up the car, and saw it very quickly. There are valuable metals inside. The thief got probably $75-$125 at a scrap dealer for it, but it will cost $2000 to replace it. (Thankfully we have insurance.) .
It had to have happened here, in the parking lot of the retirement community, because it was fine the last time she drove it in early March. It is especially shocking because she is disabled and it was parked in a handicapped spot. He said as people are losing their jobs, they are desperate for anything they can get their hands on. And he agreed when I said it’s only going to get worse. They said they are worried about the cars on their lot and are keeping as many of the Priuses inside as they can. Any hybrid vehicle is at risk.
For us, it will mean whatever hassle my mom has to go through with the insurance company in order to submit the claim. And for me, it means at least three trips outside: meeting the adjuster, taking it to whatever mechanic the insurance will want to use to inspect it, and taking it in for the actual repairs. Given that I also have Prius and there is no garage to park in, I inquired with my mechanic about what can be done to prevent such a thing in the future.
My mechanic said there are security systems from Toyota that you can get installed which will set off an alarm. So we are looking into that. We are also considering one or both of us trading it in for something that wouldn’t be at risk for this kind of thing (and also downsizing to one car). Seems like a huge liability going forward knowing that the supply chains are down and parts may not be easy to come by. We both wanted fuel efficiency as a resiliency measure, but it’s not that resilient if you can’t get the part down the line. Not sure how we will proceed, but if anyone has any thoughts about how to protect the catalytic converters on a Prius or what you would do in a similar situation, I would welcome any advice or insight anyone can offer.
https://www.wlox.com/2019/12/27/espn-reporters-death-prompts-questions-about-dangers-pneumonia/
This looks like a classic coronavirus related cytokine storm pneumonia death…
And having been on disability two years now following a similar illness…i i wonder…is this the very first case we missed?
Also…look at lancet…pre and post publication about patient presentation of symptoms
Yes, ok, those of us in mixed economies do realize that paying for something in your taxes is not “free”, but in one sense it is. It is freeing to know ahead of time exactly how much of your income is going towards those costs that either you cannot avoid or you cannot predict. Each society gets to decide whether they want that to be a shared risk or a competitive one. If someone in Sweden is paying 60% of their income for these services, they are making a comfortable income. We had Swedish friends (a government official and a teacher), who paid 90 and 80% respectively, but their incomes were very high and they lived comfortably in spite of the taxes. Here in Canada, my husband and I with a fairly low retirement income pay only 14% for our “free” healthcare, up-to-university education, some subsidized elder care and other services. While we were working, it was more.
I can respect that Americans have chosen (or not) to give insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies the responsibility for their health care, but while you decry central government bureaucratic waste (which certainly happens sometimes), we from the outside observe gross overcharging by rapacious corporate entities, and personal bankruptcies due to medical bills, in the States.
We are not bound to trust all the information we get from the big outfits, government or otherwise. We can order our lives with a mix of choices, just as you do. But in terms of per capita cost, single-payer systems have proven to be much more efficient.
There is the argument that sometimes you have to wait for treatment. This is true, but generally (outside pandemic conditions, which are chaotic everywhere), the greatest need is filled first, with no reference to being able to pay for it. When I lost my sight to a vicious virus in both eyes, I got my first corneal transplant immediately the virus was under control. The second one took a couple of years. Why? Because there were others out there who couldn’t see at all, and there are a limited number of corneas available. Even if I could have bought my way to the head of the line, I wouldn’t have done it. I could see again, and others couldn’t. I was content to be “on the list”, and got the “second sight” back two years later.
These are all choices. You live in a structurally competitive society, we live in a structurally cooperative one. Neither is “free” or perfect, but our choice is an informed one.
AASCP 7:30 pm Wednesday by Physician. [Don't forget to mute.]
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