wiredrider9 said:And another thing—these Crisis Headquarters love to talk a big game about "public health," but honestly, what are they saying about the health of the thousand people who drop every single day from those shots? What’s going to happen to everyone else? People are going to pack on the pounds like pigs during this lockdown just because they're bored out of their minds eating everything in sight. And don't even get me started on how many people are going to spiral into depression and all that other mental health crap. Where's the "health" in that? We’re already one of the most overweight and physically lazy nations in the EU.
I'm just sitting here waiting for some expert advice and instructions from Beroš and Markotic once I finally get a break from work. Should I just head into the woods and go full Rambo during this isolation?
That is exactly what I tell people. In America, cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death, yet now we're forcing people to sit around, eat junk, drink, and smoke.
I suppose the silver lining here is that the government might finally be forced to stop wasting money on all sorts of nonsense; I was just reading that the fighter jet purchase has been called off.
Addressing questions this complex really requires years of dedicated study, and even then, we might only get rough estimates for infection rates or fatalities rather than exact answers. I guess most of what’s happening right now is just visually engaging because everyone with an internet connection is suddenly obsessed with graphs, curves, and all these new technical terms. In my opinion, the only truly significant number is the cumulative total of births and deaths worldwide—basically, the global population. Right now, the world population grows by about 1.2% annually, though that rate is slowing slightly since the numbers are already so high. If that growth continues steadily, a pandemic doesn't really change the big picture. I mean, technically one exists, but cumulatively, it's almost negligible. Even if millions of people passed away globally due to COVID-19, it would be hard to notice on a global scale. It seems like the declining birth rates in Europe are a much more visible issue. As for Africa, COVID-19 might not impact them as severely; they have a very young population on average, and their immune systems aren't used to such sterile environments. Maybe this will just accelerate the ongoing trends in migration.
We have someone at our company who’s about 25 years old and acts just like Aleksandar Vučić; honestly, I guess I should congratulate the parents on that one.
That whole scene at the airport where they were thanking our Chinese brothers, promising that the heavenly nation would return the favor whenever things get tough... it was quite something. I suppose if I'm lucky, maybe I'll live long enough to see that happen before aliens actually land.
brightpilot6 said:He didn't quite grasp the part about actually using soap when washing his hands, did he?☕
I guess you wouldn't find this funny if you were in my shoes. If things stay like this until summer, I’ll be stuck in an apartment with four women and a female dog. All that's on TV are cartoons and Turkish soap operas. I probably needed over a week of mental recovery just to deal with it.
Well, like Sid says, 18 pounds of meat is just 18 pounds of meat. I guess the dog is eating pretty well.
Since I was recently looking for an apartment in Washington, D.C., I spent quite a bit of time researching all the different neighborhoods, building styles, and everything else. We eventually settled on a massive concrete high-rise from the 80s; we’re pretty high up, which was a bit nerve-wracking, but I guess we didn't really suffer any damage. We might need to check a few partition walls, maybe about $333 worth of repairs. Those thick reinforced walls definitely seem to make a difference, though. My partner lives in one of those century-old buildings downtown, and because of that, we practically had to move out along with our dog. You can always renovate a place, but you probably have to wait for this whole hysteria to die down before you can find a contractor and deal with the costs. Two large units in that building recently sold for a fortune, and even more money was poured into a total gut renovation. It would be a shame if the earthquake broke all of that in just ten seconds. Most of the historic downtown area is either facing complete reconstruction or total demolition. Not to mention, people often change up the walls during renovations—some friends of ours almost accidentally brought a building down because a young structural engineer messed up the blueprints. In my opinion, the city should probably stop expanding into the outer suburbs and instead encourage residential and commercial investment right in the center. They build a little hotel or a small building here and there, but it feels like it's just not enough.
brightpilot6 said:Good grief, I can only begin to imagine a scenario where the bars and restaurants are actually running normally for those just trying to survive 🤣
The possibilities for chaos are endless—everything from intentional infections and falsified test results to cold-blooded murders fueled by pure jealousy 🙏
Well boss, who else would they be working for if not the survivors?
By some twist of fate, if you recall what I posted not too long ago, I actually got caught up in this mess. I ended up getting a dog for my apartment right after the earthquake.🤣
Without the hype, there's no reason for news stations to hover outside hospitals counting up the severe cases. It doesn't really help anyone; I guess it just creates panic and unrealistic expectations. I don't think the US will be able to stop this epidemic using the same methods they used in China, mostly because there isn't much of a plan or the will to go that far. People might just have to get used to this new illness until the fear starts to fade. The Chinese could lock down an entire megalopolis because they have plenty more just like it, but in the US, shutting down entire states would be totally unsustainable. It would be like trying to shut down just New York City or just Italy to solve everything—it's just not the same thing. So, maybe this illness will stick around for a while, and we'll all just need to build up immunity. I doubt any government official will ever go on TV and say the virus is gone forever and won't come back. That’s why I feel like counting cases is a bit pointless; those numbers don't just reset to zero. They never do for any disease, not even for something like the plague which can resurface.
Matthew Young35 said:What kind of absolute demagoguery is this? Even Milka Planinc would be embarrassed by that "counting them like livestock" line. And how exactly would you propose counting them, if I may ask?
Counting patients is a fundamental necessity. It’s how you determine how many medications you need, how many doctors, how many nurses, how many ventilators, how many beds, and how many rooms... So, how else would you count them besides... one, two, three, four, five, six, and so on? Is that what you mean? Counting them like livestock?
I guess it's worth noting that up until now, most cases here have been mild, with only one moderate case. Plus, more and more doctors are getting infected, and I suppose they weren't all away skiing in Austria. If not the sick patients, then who is spreading it? Yesterday, the ER had over 300 calls from people panicking and asking to be tested. Why even treat them if it isn't a severe case, especially when the focus is on containing the spread? Nowadays, it seems like anyone in America who coughs thinks they're dying. You can see what happens in Italy when sick people come into contact with the virus. Even recently, family doctors have been advising people with the flu or similar symptoms not to come in unless absolutely necessary, since clinic waiting rooms are basically the number one spot to pick up something new. I feel like I'm stating the obvious here. Once there are thousands of infections—and there will be—that's when this advice will become standard. When the Secretary starts talking about it on TV, remember what I said. There's no point in counting or testing everyone if they don't have a severe case. It doesn't make sense; the raw numbers are almost irrelevant because they just keep climbing anyway. What matters is that people with different levels of illness get the right treatment. Mild cases can probably stay home with some pills and tea while isolating, keeping distance from others. Severe cases go to the hospital, but without the panic.
Anthony Jackson2 said:The mortality rate isn't anywhere near 3%—not when everyone who dies gets lumped into the stats, and as someone already pointed out, a huge chunk of those infected aren't even being counted. I mean, believing there were only 80 cases here after doctors were interacting with dozens of people daily—every single one of those infected was out there somewhere, touching things, sneezing...
Cut me some slack if I say there aren't at least 1,000 people in the US today dealing with mild or zero symptoms. My old man had all the classic signs at the end of January—about three weeks of unexplained fever, a cough, just feeling wiped out. They tested him for various infections and did lung scans—nothing showed up. Who's to say this virus didn't hit the States long before we actually started testing and tracking the situation? Half these cases probably just got misdiagnosed as the flu.
Nobody can really guarantee anything, and honestly, this whole process of counting new daily cases feels a bit like counting cars at a border crossing. It seems a little pointless and maybe just serves to stir up panic. Instead of this, they should have focused on social distancing guidelines, handed out millions of masks, kept things open, and most importantly, strictly barred anyone with even mild symptoms—including those with Covid—from entering any medical facilities. What good does it do to go there and just spread the infection to other sick patients? Maybe it's better if they stay home, treat themselves with standard methods, and isolate in their own rooms. Hospitals should really be reserved for the severe cases. Those two twins were kept in the hospital for weeks without much reason. There are probably hundreds, maybe thousands, of cases already. I think the priority should be treating people rather than counting them like cattle.
When Plenković received his red card, he claimed it was due to the sluggish response to Covid, though at the time, most people felt that was just a shaky excuse to avoid talking about those asset disclosures directly. And now...
wiredfalcon2 said:Alright, I guess I'll finally weigh in and sign off on this too. Jessica Gonzalez grabbed some statistical data that's completely irrelevant and spun an entire narrative out of it. Like, look, within those 1.3 or whatever number of posts, you've got people who just pass away from natural causes, not because of a disease you could easily prevent by simply not coughing in everyone's face. The mortality rate for Corona is 30 times higher than your standard flu. Plus, the strain on the healthcare system is massive because people actually need intensive care to recover, unlike the regular flu where you usually don't.
I'm sorry, but if you take another look at my post, you'll see I wasn't getting into the weeds. I was just highlighting some basic stats regarding the death toll in America. That includes everyone—deaths from old age, various illnesses, accidents, homicides, suicides, and so on, including well-known viruses. It’s basically the national mortality rate, and unfortunately, the US is already struggling quite a bit with it, which is something I see happening right here in my own community. And yeah, looking at the nation as a whole, the risk factor is definitely higher than it is in Italy.
My point was more about how people are acting. Honestly, they're behaving like animals. We had our own Civil War not too long ago, and even then, we didn't see this kind of frantic hoarding in grocery stores. Global and national health organizations are doing their jobs, and I hope they're doing them well, but modern communication technology means ideas and behaviors spread incredibly fast—maybe even faster than the virus itself. People are spending thousands of dollars on meat, leaving hundreds of others potentially hungry.
Matthew Young35 said:I suspect we aren't getting the full story. I’m not talking about conspiracy theories or anything of that nature. It’s more like how you might lie to a small child just to keep them from getting too frightened.
What are the odds that every single nation on Earth would descend into absolute panic and trigger a total economic collapse over a virus that infected roughly two hundred thousand people, with a mortality rate of just 0.001 percent for anyone under sixty?
Perhaps they are terrified it might mutate into something significantly more lethal or far more contagious? Or maybe they realize this isn't just a seasonal thing and that infection rates will climb exponentially without any sign of slowing down? Or who knows... heaven only knows.
To me, it feels surreal that the entire world has ground to a halt because of a few thousand elderly deaths, however tragic those losses may be.
I wouldn't say they are hiding things, per se, but there are certain details they simply aren't discussing. Again, I want to emphasize: I'm not suggesting a grand conspiracy. It's more likely they just don't want to spark even more panic than what we are already seeing.
I wouldn't call it a conspiracy, mostly because governments can't seem to agree on anything. It seems more like the math itself is what scares them—if the number of infections and deaths keeps climbing uncontrollably, healthcare systems just won't be able to handle the influx of patients, especially older folks. In America, a major concern is our aging population, which is the most vulnerable group. Almost every family has seniors, and it's really tough to fully shield them from these kinds of seasonal bugs. Winter is always a struggle with colds and the flu, and now we have Corona on top of it. It also shows how much of an issue borders are; in a crisis like this, the idea of a unified system like the European Union feels a bit theoretical.
wiredfalcon2 said:The Euro is canceled, looks like we all need to become statisticians and doctors overnight ☕
You don't need to be a statistician or a doctor to look at the data from the Census Bureau. I'm not really getting into how dangerous Corona is or isn't—it’ll probably take quite a while before we have definitive stats on that. I’m just saying that, by default, the baseline risk of death seems to be in the same ballpark as what people are saying about Corona. For an average person in America, the default mortality risk isn't like, one in a thousand, whereas they say Corona is around 3.5 percent. The default is probably over 1.3 percent, and while it's hard to pin down the exact stats for Corona, it seems to be heading toward that 1 percent mark. So, when you head to the grocery store to grab something to eat, maybe we should think about what exactly we're afraid of. In my own company over the last two years, three people passed away between the ages of 30 and 50, and it wasn't because of a virus. There are deaths and serious illnesses in my family too, so I personally don't feel like this virus is the primary issue. America generally deals with high male mortality rates due to stress and lifestyle-related diseases. If an unprecedented panic is being declared, then I guess it’s no wonder people are acting panicky. The virus itself might not be the main problem; it emerged from nature, just like we did, and our species has lived alongside viruses since the beginning. Maybe the real issue is people and how they react. So many "ad hoc" decisions have been made in such a record-breaking short timeframe, and I suppose in time, we'll have to weigh all the pros and cons.
In the US, about 55,000 people pass away annually, and since we have roughly 330 million residents (give or take, let's round it), I guess that means there's a baseline chance of about 1.3-1.4% of dying in any given year, even without considering things like Corona. It might take a lot more time to get solid statistics for Corona, much like how we still don't have exact numbers for H1N1—just general ranges. But assuming a baseline of around 1.35%, I wonder how people have lived with that until now? Are we even really aware of that number? And since death rates tend to rise due to an aging population and shifting demographics, maybe that baseline percentage will continue to climb for a while. Naturally, just like with Corona, the risk increases as you get older. For young people, it’s definitely much lower than 1.35%, whereas for the elderly, it's likely higher.
Things have gotten pretty quiet lately; I guess everyone spent all their cash over the last couple of days. I even asked at the local grocery store where everybody went. Show me the crowds. There's just nobody out here.
Amanda Evans2 said:My wife tells me the police at the local Walmart are completely out of stock What on earth is going on, people? Why in the world would anyone feel the need to stockpile toilet paper like this...
Do you think the GDP will see an unprecedented jump because of all this spending? ☕
It’s honestly just a shame how much food is going to go to waste.