COVID-19 Discussion 😷

[ButterflyEffect]

Sounds like the anger coming from the right-wing here should be targeted towards the previous government. In a time of need, what did the government provide to those who found themselves without a job or unable to find a job? Unemployment Insurance doesn't last very long. A cheque for 600 dollars may as well be a slap in the face to those who have been without work for almost a year. You pay the taxes, what did you get in return?

[ButterflyEffect]

Throwback to a year ago today
 

 

[Guest]

On 2/1/2021 at 4:31 PM, ButterflyEffect said:

Sounds like the anger coming from the right-wing here should be targeted towards the previous government. In a time of need, what did the government provide to those who found themselves without a job or unable to find a job? Unemployment Insurance doesn't last very long. A cheque for 600 dollars may as well be a slap in the face to those who have been without work for almost a year. You pay the taxes, what did you get in return?

Well, also ...the amount of taxes we're going to have to pay, not only on those payments, but I think it's an open question how the stimulus payments are being handled, whether we will be taxed on those. It seems kind of strange to offer it and then do that? 

[ButterflyEffect]

On 2/6/2021 at 1:15 PM, Drew said:

Well, also ...the amount of taxes we're going to have to pay, not only on those payments, but I think it's an open question how the stimulus payments are being handled, whether we will be taxed on those. It seems kind of strange to offer it and then do that? 

Canada's CERB benefits were also not taxed, but there was fair warning to recipients to keep that in mind to stash some from each payout for the invadable tax pay-in that would come in tax season. Whether people listened or not to the warning remains to be seen, but they were told. However my reference to taxes in that post was more referring to what you pay in sales tax, income tax, etc. The government takes a lot from you, what did they do for you in turn during your time of need?

--------------------

 Looks like our luck has run out in my province. After months and months (literally from like May through January) of 0 or 1 new COVID cases, and being back to relatively normal life (open restaurants, bars, work places, etc.) we have a new outbreak, with 42 new cases in the past 2 days. Also the very first instances of community transmission of the virus in the province. We had a good run, but we did become very complacent. To make matters worse, we're in the middle of an election, with election day being Saturday. To say that I'm pretty ticked off that I have to go out, stand in line, and vote in a completely unnecessary election with the virus being transmitted through the city pretty quickly, would be quite the understatement. Not that I was going to vote Liberal anyway, but I wish I could vote Conservative AND not spoil my ballot by writing on my ballot for the Liberals who forced this election (in order to essentially seize power) to suck my nuts.

I'm fully expecting us to be back in lockdown by next week.

[ButterflyEffect]

Yup, we're essentially in lock down. Voting in the election on Saturday has been suspended for 17 of the 40 electoral districts, including the one I live in. Office is closed, most businesses are closed. Welcome to March of last year part 2.

[ButterflyEffect]

We are officially on a complete lockdown, after 200+ new cases just this week. The major cause for concern is that the outbreak is of the B.1.1.7 variant (UK-Kent strain), which is much more contagious and possibly also deadlier (still to be determined). Since we were living life pretty much as normal here, it looks like it was able to spread super quickly before it was first detected. 

How quickly life can change. On Friday evening I was at a restaurant, on Sunday evening I had a few friends over to watch the Superbowl. On Monday there was an abnormally high bump in new cases of COVID. By Tuesday the numbers had skyrocketed, and by tonight everything was shut down.

[*Chris]

26 minutes ago, ButterflyEffect said:

We are officially on a complete lockdown, after 200+ new cases just this week. The major cause for concern is that the outbreak is of the B.1.1.7 variant (UK-Kent strain), which is much more contagious and possibly also deadlier (still to be determined). Since we were living life pretty much as normal here, it looks like it was able to spread super quickly before it was first detected. 

How quickly life can change. On Friday evening I was at a restaurant, on Sunday evening I had a few friends over to watch the Superbowl. On Monday there was an abnormally high bump in new cases of COVID. By Tuesday the numbers had skyrocketed, and by tonight everything was shut down.

I feel this so much; our province went through something similar and especially the part of the province where I grew up.
 

Sending positive thoughts to all of people in NFLD!  

[TeamAudra]

Yeah, we’ve all learned how quickly it can spread over the past year. I underestimated it myself, even though the math is relatively easy to do. The lockdown might slow it down a little, but people will still infect each other in their homes, and “essential” workers will spread it amongst each other, and bring it back to their families. It will keep burning until there is no more “dead wood.” 

Edited February 13, 2021 by TeamAudra

[mercfan3]

Got my vaccine yesterday!

 

My blood pressure dropped a bit for a few minutes (which is both apparently a bit of a side effect of the vaccine, and something that I do for personal health reasons - but not unexpected), and I had a dead arm feeling after (that's a little sore today), but overall went easy. Today I'm not feeling sick at all, but apparently it's the second shot that gets you. (I had pfizer) 

 

I am so happy to see an end to this.

 

Also blessed to have the governor that I had. Cuomo and Newsom - the two governors getting the most acclaim at first - are facing criticisms (and rightly so). Lamont has been outstanding..in his decisions to shut down what needs to be shut down, his nursing home plans, early decision to wear masks etc.. and knew enough to develop his own vaccine distribution plan..and everyone 16 and up will be eligible by April 6, a full month ahead of Biden's plan. His actions allowed ct residents to live normally (with a bit of a nuisance with masks) and safely. And I say that as someone who wasn't the biggest Lamont supporter when I voted for him. (Yes, I know that CT is small, but we're also surrounded by NYC, Boston, and Springfield.)

[RWG]

My age group is supposed to receive a first shot in June now. With the exception of Northern Territories, only healthcare workers, people over 80s, and Indigenous people slightly younger have been vaccinated in Canada.

 

Where we stand with this virus right now feels murky, even among experts. We have vaccines, but we also have variants. I have the sense we probably won't stuff this thing out for decades, if ever, but it also seems plausible that it won't ever be as disruptive as it was in 2020.

[TeamAudra]

I’ve talked to a lot of people who have been vaccinated. Not all of them are old people either. I’m not sure where I fall on the list, but I’m in no hurry, since I already had the virus. I know they say immunity lasts 3+ months and don’t seem to know for sure, but I don’t think there are many cases of reinfection. I probably should be considered a “front line” worker, considering I meet people face to face every day, but nobody seems to have answers on that. So, I’ll just wait. 

[ButterflyEffect]

Quote

Five reasons why COVID herd immunity is probably impossible
 

As COVID-19 vaccination rates pick up around the world, people have reasonably begun to ask: how much longer will this pandemic last? It’s an issue surrounded with uncertainties. But the once-popular idea that enough people will eventually gain immunity to SARS-CoV-2 to block most transmission — a ‘herd-immunity threshold’ — is starting to look unlikely.
 

That threshold is generally achievable only with high vaccination rates, and many scientists had thought that once people started being immunized en masse, herd immunity would permit society to return to normal. Most estimates had placed the threshold at 60–70% of the population gaining immunity, either through vaccinations or past exposure to the virus. But as the pandemic enters its second year, the thinking has begun to shift. In February, independent data scientist Youyang Gu changed the name of his popular COVID-19 forecasting model from ‘Path to Herd Immunity’ to ‘Path to Normality’. He said that reaching a herd-immunity threshold was looking unlikely because of factors such as vaccine hesitancy, the emergence of new variants and the delayed arrival of vaccinations for children.
 

Gu is a data scientist, but his thinking aligns with that of many in the epidemiology community. “We’re moving away from the idea that we’ll hit the herd-immunity threshold and then the pandemic will go away for good,” says epidemiologist Lauren Ancel Meyers, executive director of the University of Texas at Austin COVID-19 Modeling Consortium. This shift reflects the complexities and challenges of the pandemic, and shouldn’t overshadow the fact that vaccination is helping. “The vaccine will mean that the virus will start to dissipate on its own,” Meyers says. But as new variants arise and immunity from infections potentially wanes, “we may find ourselves months or a year down the road still battling the threat, and having to deal with future surges”.
 

Long-term prospects for the pandemic probably include COVID-19 becoming an endemic disease, much like influenza. But in the near term, scientists are contemplating a new normal that does not include herd immunity. Here are some of the reasons behind this mindset, and what they mean for the next year of the pandemic.

....

Full article at: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00728-2?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_content=organic&utm_campaign=NGMT_USG_JC01_GL_Nature

[Niki]

Hey everyone, long time no see. Came in here to look at who the fan faves are on idol this year and saw this thread. 
 

Wanted to say that covid is no joke. I have it right now and I’m on day 10. My mom got it at work and my whole family is sick now, including my toddler.  

[bswanson]

5 hours ago, Niki said:

Hey everyone, long time no see. Came in here to look at who the fan faves are on idol this year and saw this thread. 
 

Wanted to say that covid is no joke. I have it right now and I’m on day 10. My mom got it at work and my whole family is sick now, including my toddler.  

hope you feel better soon and Rhea is so adorable. 

[Niki]

20 hours ago, bswanson said:

hope you feel better soon and Rhea is so adorable. 

Thank you! 

[ShortstopVM]

On 4/10/2021 at 12:47 PM, Niki said:

Hey everyone, long time no see. Came in here to look at who the fan faves are on idol this year and saw this thread. 
 

Wanted to say that covid is no joke. I have it right now and I’m on day 10. My mom got it at work and my whole family is sick now, including my toddler.  

 

I'm sorry to hear that Niki; I'm wishing you and your family a full recovery  

[Niki]

1 hour ago, ShortstopVM said:

 

I'm sorry to hear that Niki; I'm wishing you and your family a full recovery  

Thanks! Thankfully it’s a mild case compared to some. My mom and I finished quarantine (her Thursday and me today), but my 19 month old has to quarantine until Saturday. Her father and I are separated and she usually splits her time between our homes but she has had to quarantine here with me so he hasn’t seen her in almost two weeks and he really misses her. I feel bad but at the same time I know it’s not my fault. 

[KelseyW]

Got my first Moderna shot this past week!

[RWG]

 

 

 

As experts have repeatedly warned rich countries: leave the rest of the world out to dry now, pay the price with more aggressive variants later.

Edited April 24, 2021 by RWG

[Guest]

Finally, the CDC confirms what the rest of us knew for a very long time, LOL. 
 

I will say, when almost every piece of news not being exactly favorable to the Biden administration, I don’t blame them for taking a bit of a victory lap and making a huge deal of the change in guidance with respect to wearing masks. 
 

 

[RWG]

 

 

The most important takeaway is that these vaccinated people testing postive are reportedly all asymptomatic. (In the Yankees' case, there are over 50 people travelling with the team between the roster and staff, so it feels notable that there are only eight positives.)  If people want to wait for more data on transmission between vaccinated people or long-term effects of an asymptomic case before taking off their masks, I think that's fine. Obviously, if you're fully vaccinated and don't want to wear a mask anymore and experts say that's ok, then you shouldn't have to wear one anymore.

 

 

 

 

[TeamAudra]

The Minnesota Governor lifted the mask mandate yesterday. 

[mercfan3]

On 5/13/2021 at 5:11 PM, Drew said:

Finally, the CDC confirms what the rest of us knew for a very long time, LOL. 
 

I will say, when almost every piece of news not being exactly favorable to the Biden administration, I don’t blame them for taking a bit of a victory lap and making a huge deal of the change in guidance with respect to wearing masks. 
 

 

I think they wouldn’t lift

the mask mandate because anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers are the same people.

 

if they say “vaccinated people can go without masks” before enough people were vaccinated, the spread was going to happen quickly because people are gonna lie.

 

The CDC likely wanted to wait until everyone has had access to vaccines (or as many people as possible..and at this point, you can just walk into a cvs. Although some communities are still having problems..) and a high enough percentage of Americans have gotten at least one shot, that the risk the anti maskers/anti vax crew pose is limited now. 

Edited May 15, 2021 by mercfan3

[TeamAudra]

Got my first shot yesterday. Since I had covid in Dec, I figured I’d wait a little bit. My Doctor thinks the antibodies last for at least 6-8 months, but I didn’t pry for information, so I don’t know where he got that. He just said there have been “studies.” How many people have had it twice? Probably very few. 

[QueenKalie]

Just now, TeamAudra said:

Got my first shot yesterday. Since I had covid in Dec, I figured I’d wait a little bit. My Doctor thinks the antibodies last for at least 6-8 months, but I didn’t pry for information, so I don’t know where he got that. He just said there have been “studies.” How many people have had it twice? Probably very few. 

I've heard of people getting it twice. I dont think its common but it has definitely happened.