[News] Coronavirus

A place to discuss the now-global coronavirus outbreak.

garion333 wrote:
Coldstream wrote:
Docjoe wrote:

Kind of exciting stuff given the early read on efficacy and the reported minimal side effects. Should also be a huge boon to vaccine development in the future.

Indeed. I haven't had a chance to read up on the latest mRNA vaccine stuff, but what little I've read makes it seem as though it's fairly big step forward. I'm really hoping everything works out as advertised.

Serious question, but doesn't it seem a titch odd that Pfizer said 90% effective, Moderna said 94.5% and then Pfizer came back with 95%?

I get that Pfizer's original 90% was preliminary and all, but they had to have fudged the numbers a lil to get ahead of Moderna, ya?

Moderna's results were also preliminary, so they still got a chance to one up the Pfonz.

farley3k wrote:
“Health officials have done a deep-dive into the data to determine where these increasing numbers are coming from,” Waller said. “It’s not coming from restaurants. We think that maybe people are doing things correctly when they’re out in public, but then they’re going home and having gatherings at home. We think that’s maybe where the spread is occurring.”

So pro business that he is willing to blame people in their homes! That is about as republican as I can imagine someone being

The info data from Ontario and Quebec indicates that Waller is 100% right, at least in Canada. Our restaurants have introduced social distancing or have closed down. Contact tracing shows the great majority of outbreaks can be traced to people having parties or get-togethers at home.

tuffalobuffalo wrote:
OG_slinger wrote:

Tyson managers bet money on how many workers would contract COVID-19

Iowa Capital Dispatch wrote:

A wrongful death lawsuit tied to COVID-19 infections in a Waterloo pork processing plant alleges that during the initial stages the pandemic, Tyson Foods ordered employees to report for work while supervisors privately wagered money on the number of workers who would be sickened by the deadly virus.

Earlier this year, the family of the late Isidro Fernandez sued the meatpacking company, alleging Fernandez was exposed to the coronavirus at the Waterloo plant where he worked. The lawsuit alleges Tyson Foods is guilty of a “willful and wanton disregard for workplace safety.”

Fernandez, who died on April 20, was one of at least five Waterloo plant employees who died of the virus. According to the Black Hawk County Health Department, more than 1,000 workers at the plant — over a third of the facility’s workforce — contracted the virus.

The lawsuit alleges that despite the uncontrolled spread of the virus at the plant, Tyson required its employees to work long hours in cramped conditions without providing the appropriate personal protective equipment and without ensuring workplace-safety measures were followed.

The lawsuit was recently amended and includes a number of new allegations against the company and plant officials. Among them:

-- In mid-April, around the time Black Hawk County Sheriff Tony Thompson visited the plant and reported the working conditions there “shook [him] to the core,” plant manager Tom Hart organized a cash-buy-in, winner-take-all, betting pool for supervisors and managers to wager how many plant employees would test positive for COVID-19.

-- John Casey, an upper-level manager at the plant, is alleged to have explicitly directed supervisors to ignore symptoms of COVID-19, telling them to show up to work even if they were exhibiting symptoms of the virus. Casey reportedly referred to COVID-19 as the “glorified flu” and told workers not to worry about it because “it’s not a big deal” and “everyone is going to get it.” On one occasion, Casey intercepted a sick supervisor who was on his way to be tested and ordered him to get back to work, saying, “We all have symptoms — you have a job to do.” After one employee vomited on the production line, managers reportedly allowed the man to continue working and then return to work the next day.

-- In late March or early April, as the pandemic spread across Iowa, managers at the Waterloo plant reportedly began avoiding the plant floor for fear of contracting the virus. As a result, they increasingly delegated managerial authority and responsibilities to low-level supervisors who had no management training or experience. The supervisors did not require truck drivers and subcontractors to have their temperatures checked before entering the plant.

-- In March and April, plant supervisors falsely denied the existence of any confirmed cases or positive tests for COVID-19 within the plant, and allegedly told workers they had a responsibility to keep working to ensure Americans didn’t go hungry as the result of a shutdown.

-- Tyson paid out $500 “thank you bonuses” to employees who turned up for every scheduled shift for three months — a policy decision that allegedly incentivized sick workers to continue reporting for work.

-- Tyson executives allegedly lobbied Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds for COVID-19 liability protections that would shield the company from lawsuits, and successfully lobbied the governor to declare that only the state government, not local governments, had the authority to close businesses in response to the pandemic.

Tyson has yet to file a response to the new allegations, and did not respond to a call from the Iowa Capital Dispatch. In previous court filings, Tyson said it “vigorously disputes” the plaintiffs’ claims in this case, adding that it has “worked from the very beginning of the pandemic to follow federal workplace guidelines and has invested millions of dollars to provide employees with safety and risk-mitigation equipment.”

The lawsuit claims that while Tyson has repeatedly claimed that its operations needed to remain open to feed America, the company increased its exports to China by 600% during the first quarter of 2020.

The lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages for fraudulent misrepresentation and gross negligence.

Good grief.

Hey, my old hometown is in the news!

Chairman_Mao wrote:

Vermont governor Phil Scott, who is technically a Republican (within the Vermont Overton Window), said this yesterday:

To the skeptics: If you want to ignore or choose not to believe the science, there’s not much we can do to stop you. But the number of people in hospitals is growing because some care more about what they want to do rather than what they need to do to help protect others. The consequences of an overwhelmed healthcare system will have a far greater impact on our economy and welfare than all the prevention and mitigation measures. The skeptics are right, they can do what they want. But please don’t call it patriotic or pretend it’s about freedom. Real patriots serve and sacrifice for all, whether they agree with them or not. Patriots stand up and fight when our nation’s health and security is threatened, and right now, our country and way of life are being attacked by this virus, not the protections we put in place."

In case any other Republican leaders want to know what leadership sounds like...

Also, Bernie Sanders said on Cuomo last night that Scott promised him he'd appoint a senator who'd caucus with Democrats if Sanders was picked for Biden's cabinet. I'm less skeptical of that promise after reading the above. Good to see real leadership still exists on the outer rim of the GOP galaxy.

Top_Shelf wrote:

Re: recent spikes.

My theory is that once Trump didn't die (early Oct) lots of folks said, "f*ck it. I'm done with this sh*t."

That's pretty much what happened here. In early October we were still only having 20-40 new cases a day. Two weeks after Trump's recovery we started climbing and broke 100 new cases per day on the 30th, well before any Halloween or Election day cases would show up. Most of our cases have been spread through smaller in-home gatherings rather than restaraunts & stores, though I'm sure the multiple overcrowded & maskless Trump rallies held in the weeks leading up to the election didn't help.

My State once again failed to take any real action. As such I went to make a stupid joke on their Twitter. Someone else already made it. I was sad to see the joke was already made. I don't expect the State to get anything right at this point.

Anyone else getting these news updates that are just "we are not changing anything but it is important you are responsible"?

I feel like this is very telling that this is worth a press conference.

Stealthpizza wrote:

My State once again failed to take any real action. As such I went to make a stupid joke on their Twitter. Someone else already made it. I was sad to see the joke was already made. I don't expect the State to get anything right at this point.

Anyone else getting these news updates that are just "we are not changing anything but it is important you are responsible"?

I feel like this is very telling that this is worth a press conference.

Do you live in Indiana, because that's pretty much what our governor said yesterday. Oh, and he said this while quarantined because someone from his security detail contracted COVID.

JLS wrote:

Also, Bernie Sanders said on Cuomo last night that Scott promised him he'd appoint a senator who'd caucus with Democrats if Sanders was picked for Biden's cabinet. I'm less skeptical of that promise after reading the above. Good to see real leadership still exists on the outer rim of the GOP galaxy.

I'm afraid I have lost all trust in republicans to actually follow through on any and all of their promises. Making a statement about patriotism is easy, following through on it is entirely different. Republicans have proven time and time again that they only care about enriching themselves and grabbing power to do so.

firesloth wrote:
Stealthpizza wrote:

My State once again failed to take any real action. As such I went to make a stupid joke on their Twitter. Someone else already made it. I was sad to see the joke was already made. I don't expect the State to get anything right at this point.

Anyone else getting these news updates that are just "we are not changing anything but it is important you are responsible"?

I feel like this is very telling that this is worth a press conference.

Do you live in Indiana, because that's pretty much what our governor said yesterday. Oh, and he said this while quarantined because someone from his security detail contracted COVID.

Not Indiana. Are you saying that all of the states are doing some version of this? It's like the governors all forgot they were governors?

I know Iowa has. It must be a talking points speech sent to all of them.

Or the old adage "when your a hammer, every problem is a nail" meaning they have a frame of thinking and therefore everything is solved through that frame.

Kentucky actually implemented some restrictions again yesterday, as well as offering some aid to restaurants. Not enough of course because they need federal money. Too bad the senator from there can't do anything except confirm more judges...

Stele wrote:

Kentucky actually implemented some restrictions again yesterday, as well as offering some aid to restaurants. Not enough of course because they need federal money. Too bad the senator from there can't do anything except confirm more judges...

Don't worry, they'll never make the connection when it comes time to decide who represents them.

One of the reasons being given for my state not really considering another shutdown is that there's no federal money to help lessen the impact this time around.

Stealthpizza wrote:
firesloth wrote:
Stealthpizza wrote:

My State once again failed to take any real action. As such I went to make a stupid joke on their Twitter. Someone else already made it. I was sad to see the joke was already made. I don't expect the State to get anything right at this point.

Anyone else getting these news updates that are just "we are not changing anything but it is important you are responsible"?

I feel like this is very telling that this is worth a press conference.

Do you live in Indiana, because that's pretty much what our governor said yesterday. Oh, and he said this while quarantined because someone from his security detail contracted COVID.

Not Indiana. Are you saying that all of the states are doing some version of this? It's like the governors all forgot they were governors?

Exactly...and it's worse than that in Indiana. Our governor is passing the buck: he's literally saying he would prefer local governments be in charge of setting any restrictions. Of course, few of those have the political power or will, the administrative support, or any funding to make this happen. There will be some constraints, but subject to suppression by the loudest objectors about "FREEDOM!" and individual politicians' whims.

And, what good does it do to have city by city or even county by county pullbacks when the population is so fluid across those boundaries?

Literally, the time for the state and federal governments to step forward and lead is when there are emergencies. Our leaders have abdicated their responsibilities to do so.

Social distancing is a luxury many can’t afford. Vermont actually did something about it.

So he contacted the state to ask for advice. “‘Don’t worry,’” he recalls an official telling him. ‘“We’ve entered into contracts with local motels. If you feel you can’t operate your shelter, everyone can be given a room in a motel.’”

Within days, Remond was able to cut the number of beds in his shelter to reduce crowding and divert additional clientele to state-subsidized motel rooms. His nonprofit also organized outdoor dining and meal deliveries to further support social distancing.

...

Eight months into the pandemic, Redmond’s seen no Covid-19 cases among his patrons. Overall, there have been fewer than six cases in Vermont’s homeless population, according to the state health department. That’s less than a one percent infection rate — a stark contrast with the 25 percent infection rate among the homeless across the US.

...

Researchers studying Covid-19 policy say Vermont’s successes are inextricably linked to its approach to helping at-risk groups avoid the virus. “Vermont’s prioritization of its vulnerable populations has helped both to protect those [people] from the worst outcomes we’ve seen in other settings but also contributed to the much lower transmission rates in the state,” said Anne Sosin, the program director of Dartmouth University’s Center for Global Health Equity.

JC wrote:
JLS wrote:

Also, Bernie Sanders said on Cuomo last night that Scott promised him he'd appoint a senator who'd caucus with Democrats if Sanders was picked for Biden's cabinet. I'm less skeptical of that promise after reading the above. Good to see real leadership still exists on the outer rim of the GOP galaxy.

I'm afraid I have lost all trust in republicans to actually follow through on any and all of their promises. Making a statement about patriotism is easy, following through on it is entirely different. Republicans have proven time and time again that they only care about enriching themselves and grabbing power to do so.

"No, Charlie Brown, I won't steal a seat from you this time.

As much as I could trust the governor's intentions, if his selection is the difference between a Dem or Rep controlled senate, or if the selection would wrest control of the Dems should they get to 50 on Jan 5th, I don't know if I'd necessarily fault him for not standing up the the pressure McConnell's ilk would bring upon him. I don't think anyone holding office could stand up to that.

I don't think I would be stretching things to consider death threats, money (for him, family, state or all 3), political power, lobbying, senior executive employment (self or family). I mean how much do you think the Koch family would spend just by themselves, 10's of millions? 100 million?

fangblackbone wrote:

I mean how much do you think the Koch family would spend just by themselves, 10's of millions? 100 million?

Didn't you hear? Charles Koch is totally sorry he and his brother "screw[ed] up" by building a hyper-partisan ecosystem that fed and funded the ultra-conservative ideas and beliefs that are now eating the country alive. Now he totes wants to reach across the aisle and work with Democrats because he's a uniter, not a divider.

Charles Koch Says His Partisanship Was a Mistake

Wall Street Journal wrote:

Mr. Koch, whom Forbes calls the 15th-wealthiest man in the U.S., says he isn’t interested in more division. At age 85, he says, he is turning his attention to building bridges across partisan divides to find answers to sprawling social problems such as poverty, addiction, recidivism, gang violence and homelessness. His critics are skeptical, noting that his fierce Republican partisanship over the years blew up a lot of bridges.

Mr. Koch has written (with Brian Hooks) a new book, “Believe in People: Bottom-Up Solutions for a Top-Down World,” which will be published on Nov. 17. It is part mea culpa, part self-help guide and part road map toward a libertarian America. Along the way, the book traces Mr. Koch’s life from hardheaded adolescent to student, engineer, industrialist, tycoon and political mastermind. The book suggests that he wants to add one final act: philosopher and, he hopes, unifier.

...

Mr. Koch and his late brother David seeded the political landscape with conservative and libertarian ideas, then built an infrastructure to nurture them. Koch-aligned ventures fund more than 1,000 faculty members at more than 200 universities, helped bankroll think tanks such as the Cato Institute and the American Enterprise Institute, and supported the American Legislative Exchange Council (a nonpartisan organization of similarly minded state legislators) to write bills that were introduced and championed by Republican state lawmakers across the country.

Mr. Koch’s influence increased in 2010 after the Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that corporations were exempt from restrictions on political spending. That controversial ruling brought a flood of new money into politics from wealthy individuals, including the Koch brothers, George Soros and Sheldon Adelson. The ruling also allowed nonprofits to more easily keep the sources of their funding secret, allowing so-called “dark money” to influence elections.

The Koch brothers’ organization raised and spent billions of dollars, untethered to the limits of the campaign-finance system. The wave of money influenced policy areas from health care to environmental regulation, foreign policy and unionization. Critics warned that the Kochs were rigging the public debate to enrich their own bottom line by casting corporate self-interest as a new form of populism.

Mr. Koch disagrees and bristles at the notion that he wields too much influence. “When you look at countries that don’t let everyone participate, those in power stay in power unchallenged,” he says. “Instead of limiting certain people’s ability to engage, we should do all we can to empower more people to get engaged.”

“ ‘It seems to me the tea party was largely unsuccessful long-term.’ ”

After President Barack Obama was elected in 2008 and the tea party (which pushed to slash federal spending) emerged, Mr. Koch threw his weight behind the new movement and its candidates. “We did not create the tea party. We shared their concern about unsustainable government spending, and we supported some tea-party groups on that issue,” Mr. Koch wrote in an email. “But it seems to me the tea party was largely unsuccessful long-term, given that we’re coming off a Republican administration with the largest government spending in history.”

Mr. Koch said he has since come to regret his partisanship, which he says badly deepened divisions. “Boy, did we screw up!” he writes in his new book. “What a mess!”

Mr. Koch is now trying to work together with Democrats and liberals on issues such as immigration, criminal-justice reform and limiting U.S. intervention abroad, where he thinks common ground can be found. He has partnered with organizations including the LeBron James Family Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union and even a handful of Democratic state legislative campaigns. In 2019, he renamed the Koch network of about 700 donors as Stand Together.

Still, his political spending remains almost entirely partisan. Koch Industries’ PAC and employees donated $2.8 million in the 2020 campaign cycle to Republican candidates and $221,000 to Democratic candidates, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Koch insiders say that it will take time to build trust with Democrats, some of whom would be happy to spurn a Koch donation and then raise funds around that rejection. Mr. Koch says he will continue to look for potential partners.

f*ck your legacy, Koch. You broke it, you bought it.

Jonman wrote:

f*ck your legacy, Koch. You broke it, you bought it.

Don't do that, you'll catch something.

There is one reason and one reason alone that Koch has seen the light.

It is costing him money.

Oh, and "We did not create the tea party." ???

BAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

The rise of the Tea Party was textbook astroturfing. It should be taught in political science classes.

BadKen wrote:

There is one reason and one reason alone that Koch has seen the light.

It is costing him money.

Oh, and "We did not create the tea party." ???

BAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

The rise of the Tea Party was textbook astroturfing. It should be taught in political science classes.

They're mostly upset they lost control of it.

The rise of the Tea Party was textbook astroturfing.

The core of the Tea Party was really people who were terrified of the ongoing government budget deficits (which are a far larger ticking time bomb now than they were.) Then a bunch of weird people showed up and more or less took it over.... I think those were probably the paid political stooges. They detected a nascent movement and took control of it.

BadKen wrote:

There is one reason and one reason alone that Koch has seen the light.

It is costing him money.

Oh, and "We did not create the tea party." ???

BAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

The rise of the Tea Party was textbook astroturfing. It should be taught in political science classes.

"I never thought the face-eating leopards would eat my face!" says woman who voted for man who created the Face-Eating Leopard Party.

Malor wrote:
The rise of the Tea Party was textbook astroturfing.

The core of the Tea Party was really people who were terrified of the ongoing government budget deficits (which are a far larger ticking time bomb now than they were.) Then a bunch of weird people showed up and more or less took it over.... I think those were probably the paid political stooges. They detected a nascent movement and took control of it.

Nope. The Tea Party was formed around the screed of a CNBC reporter and never gained any traction until Koch's Americans For Prosperity got involved. It was never an organic movement. It was always about getting in Obama's way.

garion333 wrote:
Coldstream wrote:
Docjoe wrote:

Kind of exciting stuff given the early read on efficacy and the reported minimal side effects. Should also be a huge boon to vaccine development in the future.

Indeed. I haven't had a chance to read up on the latest mRNA vaccine stuff, but what little I've read makes it seem as though it's fairly big step forward. I'm really hoping everything works out as advertised.

Serious question, but doesn't it seem a titch odd that Pfizer said 90% effective, Moderna said 94.5% and then Pfizer came back with 95%?

I get that Pfizer's original 90% was preliminary and all, but they had to have fudged the numbers a lil to get ahead of Moderna, ya?

Well they better be straight because this data is going to be vetted by the scientific community maybe like no data ever has before.

Also notable that the endpoint is moderate to severe Covid symptoms, not Covid positivity. The studies weren’t designed to evaluate positivity since there was no surveillance testing in either arm. I’m worried the anti-vaxxers will latch on to that as a reason not to take it.

Docjoe wrote:

Also notable that the endpoint is moderate to severe Covid symptoms, not Covid positivity. The studies weren’t designed to evaluate positivity since there was no surveillance testing in either arm. I’m worried the anti-vaxxers will latch on to that as a reason not to take it.

I'm reasonably confident that the anti-vaxxers aren't going to want to take the vaccine because it's made with dangerous chemicals that will alter their DNA and they don't want to be implanted with a microchip that will either let the government track them wherever they go or that will allow Bill Gates to control their minds.

Edit: Sorry, missed what thread I was in. Discussion of the origins of the Tea Party are off-topic here.

edit: oops, ClockworkHouse is right, Tea Party comments, even short ones, don't belong in this thread.

Pizza worker's 'lie' forced South Australia lockdown

South Australia decided to enter a state-wide lockdown based on a lie told by a man with Covid-19 about his link to a pizza shop, police say.
The strict lockdown began on Wednesday after the state detected 36 infections, including its first locally acquired cases since April.
But this would have been avoided if the man had told the truth, that he worked shifts at the shop, officials said.
He said he only went there to buy a pizza.
This misinformation prompted health officials to assume the man had caught the virus during a very brief exposure and that the strain must be a highly contagious one.
"To say I am fuming is an understatement," state Premier Steven Marshall told reporters on Friday.
Australia has relied on lockdowns, widespread testing and aggressive contact tracing to push daily infections close to zero.

A good outcome regardless.