COVID-19

[gillianren]

Ted Cruz seems to do okay despite being a nut that no one, including his own children, likes.

[nikolai]

Ted Cruz seems to do okay despite being a nut that no one, including his own children, likes.

We'll see if he runs for reelection in 2024.  (Of course he might run for president instead.  I'm not sure whether he can run for both.)

He is in his second term, and while his initial election was quite comfortable, his reelection was 50.9% to 48.3%.  I don't know that he has a great deal of job security.

[Jeff Raven]

I see Matt Gaetz yesterday threw out more of his garbage about the virus and "Big Media's" lies, not to mention that he has the "Freedom Variant," and can't help but wonder/ be amazed about a number of things. First, how so many people buy into this stuff. (I know the psychology behind it - in spite of that it still makes me shake my head in disbelief) Second, how this isn't a violation of Congressional ethics regulations, as he is literally working to undermine the public's trust in the medical profession, including the government's various experts and offices/divisions. This is dangerous, and definitely more immediately dangerous than other conspiracies, such as flat-earth or moon-landing denial.  The latter two are dangerous, for sure, but their impact isn't in as short a time frame.

Of course, the irony is him saying that when Florida broke its record for daily cases, and today broke its record for most hospitalizations. 

Well, ironic and also sad. (as a statistic, not its impact or lack thereof on him)

[Glom]

Ow.

They really pump it in. The discomfort comes not from the needle piercing but from the pushing of the fluid into the tissue.

I do feel great shame though that I completely forgot the card from the 1st one. They had to stamp a separate card. That does my OCD in.

[gillianren]

I'm deeply frustrated that it's being framed as a First Amendment issue.  The First Amendment doesn't prevent even the government from imposing consequences on dangerous speech.  You still can't use your speech to endanger lives.  A new poll apparently shows that 35% of unvaccinated people never wear a mask when leaving the house, as compared to 16% of vaccinated people.  Vaccinated people are also more concerned about the delta variant.  I'm about two minutes from unfriending a good friend from junior high because I simply cannot listen to her anti-vaxxing on this anymore.  She's generally pro-vaccine, and she insists that this one just hasn't been tested enough.

[Zakalwe]

As George Carlin so aptly put it: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”

[Obviousman]

From Facebook:

Perhaps we should retire the phrase "avoid it like the plague" condsidering how poorly we have done at avoiding an actual plague.

[nikolai]

As George Carlin so aptly put it: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”

Some of them don't even know the difference between a mean and a median.

[gillianren]

I unfriended my friend.  Apparently she doesn't care if she dies of it and can't be persuaded to care if someone else dies because of her.

[Zakalwe]

As George Carlin so aptly put it: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”

Some of them don't even know the difference between a mean and a median.

[Peter B]

Well, dang it, we've just gone into a seven day lockdown in Canberra. Our first locally acquired case in over a year.

Being the capital city, we have a lot of embassies and high commissions. As a consequence there's been a steady stream of diplomats entering the city from literally all over the world. And they've all done the right thing and quietly accepted two-week isolations on arrival. It's all worked so well that there hasn't been a case in the community since something like July last year.

But this case today is a mystery in that they don't know where he's acquired COVID from. That, and the fact that virus fragments have been found in sewerage, together mean there are probably other cases somewhere in the community.

So I'll be working from home for the next week, and the kids are home from school. The Education Directorate isn't even bothering to organise remote learning for the week, so it's almost as good as a holiday for them, except the limits on going outside.

And that's the only thing - this lockdown is noticeably tighter than the one we had at the start of the pandemic last year.

My main concern is whether I'll be able to work with the microscopic screen on the work laptop. If not, I'll have to see if I can link it to one of our TVs. Otherwise, as I pointed out at work this afternoon, I am fully vaccinated...

[gillianren]

I'm fully vaccinated, but my best friend and I have agreed to only see one another masked and socially distanced through September.  Our Ren faire is happening this year, and she's going.  From what she's told me, I'm reasonably sure the people in charge fully expected it to be canceled and didn't plan all the way through.

[gillianren]

Greg Abbott's got it.  Can Ron Desantis be far behind?

[Zakalwe]

Greg Abbott's got it.  Can Ron Desantis be far behind?

Yes, but I would guarantee that Abbott is fully vaccinated and will get the very best medical treatment that other people's money can buy. Meanwhile, in their day jobs, they will continue to pass laws and do their utmost to stop people masking up and to continue the catcalls about socialised medicine. The depressing thing is that their voter base will lap it up.
It seems like killing off their voter base is a retrograde step for the GOP, given that in red states COVID is rampaging. No cure for stupid, I guess.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/08/pandemic-of-unvaccinated-continues-to-rage-as-states-set-new-covid-records/

[gillianren]

Apparently Arizona will be paying schools not to institute sensible precautions.  I'm sure thousands of dead children will be good for GOP support in the next election.