HEADLINE: "Infected people without symptoms might be driving the spread of coronavirus more than we realized"...
Okay, which one has it?
Is it impossible to know that the person you are sitting or standing next to you, the one who is coughing without covering his or her mouth, has coronavirus? First of all, with all the ordered shutdowns and curfews, most of us wouldn't even be out. But let's say you have a doctor's visit that you can't cancel and you are there sitting in the office. here's the scenario...
"Officials have emphasized that the virus is spread mainly by people who are already showing symptoms, such as fever, cough or difficulty breathing. If that's true, it's good news, since people who are obviously ill can be identified and isolated, making it easier to control an outbreak."
But there is another side...
"It appears that a Massachusetts coronavirus cluster with at least 82 cases was started by people who were not yet showing symptoms, and more than half a dozen studies have shown that people without symptoms are causing substantial amounts of infection."
And that's the person sitting next to you in the doctor's office. "You really need to just focus on the individuals that are symptomatic," US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar said. "It [the containment strategy] really does depend on symptomatic presentation." The CDC agrees. The administration's coronavirus response coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx doesn't exactly agree...
"Until you really understand how many people are asymptomatic and asymptomatically passing the virus on, we think it's better for the entire American public to know that the risk of serious illness may be low, but they could be potentially spreading the virus to others."
Normally I wouldn't quote anything coming from the White House but for once this makes sense...READ MORE...
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The idiot has landed but the damage is already done...
It's nice to hear the headline, "Trump, finally, takes the coronavirus emergency seriously," but so much has passed under the bridge, it isn't clear yet whether we will be able to catch up. Much less get a firm handle on the coronavirus in the United States. Testing is critical to knowing who has the disease and we are lagging so far behind it has possibly caused unnecessary deaths. The U.S. has tested only 25,000 specimens, Italy 134,000, So. Korea, 274,000.
In the early stages he called it a hoax perpetrated by the Democrats, with the Republicans in Congress supporting him. Then, he has said repeatedly that he has the coronavirus situation under control. Just yesterday he admitted, "It's bad. It's bad," and started preparations that he should have put in motion weeks ago. But not once has he taken responsibility for the spread of the virus. Pathetic! READ MORE...
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What if a majority of the doctors and other health care professionals catch the disease and are unable to give the necessary care to their patients?...
You have the customary symptoms for the virus and call your doctor's office and get the message, "Sorry, we are closed due to the fact that Dr. Brown and his staff have been diagnosed with coronavirus. Please go to the emergency room for help." Then you rush over to the Community Hospital and into emergency and the only person there is a lone technician who advises you most of the staff has come down with the virus, and it will be hours, perhaps days, before you can be seen.
You're put on a list to be seen and told to go home and self-quarantine immediately. You wait, and wait, then wait some more. This hasn't happened yet, but it could and, perhaps, soon, unless the U.S. steps up its testing for coronavirus, making it faster and simpler in order to get the sick ones off the street. As of today this country's testing stands at 25,000 specimens completed, compared to Italy, 134,000, So. Korea, 274,000.
This is beyond unconscionable, when you consider how much bigger the United States is than either of these countries, or both countries combined, for that matter. We have identified 4,400 cases, Italy, 28,000, So. Korea, 8,300. Remember my post, "Is Donald Trump delaying coronavirus kits circulation to reduce case numbers???" The general consensus seems to be that he was, until public and congressional pressure demanded action...READ MORE...
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As of last Thursday, Donald Trump had tested only 77 people for coronavirus for that week. He promised 4,000 per day starting yesterday, but I have seen no indication that this has started. So much for T-rump promises...READ MORE...
Will Trump's connection to "Carnival Corp. chairman Micky Arison, a friend whose company helped sponsor Trump’s reality show franchise The Apprentice over the years, prompt him to give favoritism to the cruise industry? Yes, according to an article published on March 8...READ MORE...
Donald Trump's November chances of reelection have gone down the drain along with his incompetent presidency, says Peter Wehner who served under both Reagan and Bush. There's more...
"Wehner argues that while all the warning signs of Trump’s unfitness for the presidency have been clear for years, it’s taken the coronavirus crisis to really drive home just how big of a mistake it was to make him the most powerful person on the planet."
The headline says it all: "Trump is breaking every rule in the CDC’s 450-page playbook for health crisis." On March, reported...
Amid an outbreak where vaccines, drug treatments and even sufficient testing don’t yet exist, communication that is delivered early, accurately and credibly is the strongest medicine in the government’s arsenal.
And then the Washington Post says...
"But the Trump administration’s zigzagging, defensive, inconsistent messages about the novel coronavirus continued Friday, breaking almost every rule in the book and eroding the most powerful weapon officials possess: Public trust."
Here's a confirmation of the piece, above, scuttling Donald Trump in November's election. Again, the headline says it, "Coronavirus crisis has set off the ‘slow-motion collapse’ of the Trump presidency." Former New York Times editor Howell Raines added...
"that Trump has never been a particularly popular president and the government’s response to the pandemic will be his undoing."
One, and most of the country, can only hope...READ MORE...
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But here is the headline of the day, "Psychiatrist explains how Trump activates his supporters’ ‘reptilian and primitive emotional’ brains." Have you ever heard a better definition of T-rump's double-digit followers? I think not. Dr. James S. Gordon, a clinical professor at Georgetown Medical School adds...
"The insecurity that feeds Trump’s self-importance invites me to be more modest; his disregard for the truth shows me how vital it is for me to be honest; his greed shames me to greater generosity; his self-justification and self-righteousness invite me to deepened awareness of similar tendencies I may have; his fear of the ‘other’ challenges me to always take chances on mutual understanding.”
If only Donald Trump could understand...READ MORE...
Here is more of the greed of the White House maniac. This is the scenario...
Melania, Trump, Merkel
"German lawmakers and government officials voiced outrage at reporting Sunday that the Trump administration is seeking to secure exclusive rights to a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by the German firm CureVac as the pandemic spreads and takes lives across the globe."
He wants it exclusively for the United States, leaving the rest of the world to find their own, and, no doubt, has plans to add the German company to the Trump conglomeration when he no longer is in the White House. Now the end of this statement is purely my own, but doesn't it make sense, based on what we know about this professional con man?...READ MORE...
Well, there's still more but this is about as much as one can absorb on Donald Trump for a single session. Later... You're on Progressive Street...Where liberals walk
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is now publishing daily updates on the status of the coronavirus pandemic. It will be updated daily at noon, Monday through Friday, and I will publish it for you as soon as it becomes available.
Here are Monday's results. More Tuesday...
Total cases: 3,487
Total deaths: 68
Jurisdictions reporting cases: 53 (49 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and US Virgin Islands)
HEADLINE: "Trump claims coronavirus is under control -- contradicting reality and his own top expert"...
Trump and expert, Dr. Fauci
It is Donald Trump's colossal affinity to lie, when the truth is better, that has attributed to the spread of coronavirus in the United State. Just consider this. There are approximately 2 million of Trump's double-digit followers who are eighty years of age and older who listen to him announcing that the coronavirus outbreak is "under control." Bingo! they feel they can go anywhere, do anything they want and not have to worry. Bingo! again. They are exposed to the virus.
And since this age group is the most likely to catch the virus, and if they do, because they feel free to mingle, spread it around wherever they go. It's a vicious circle created by the Oval Office lunatic, solely because this idiot is trying to protect his favorability ratings and winning the election in November. This is all unconscionable but that still makes no difference to T-rump or the wingnut Republicans in Congress. We are simply a country gone wrong...READ MORE...
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Another of those 'kill anything Barack Obama did' moves by Donald Trump...
Former President Barack Obama - Donald Trump
PBS’ Yamiche Alcindor asked T-rump why he disbanded the National Security Council’s office on pandemics. Something, explained later, that could have had a major impact on today's coronavirus status. The Oval Office lunatic promised to be a "wrecking ball" on Democrats and has taken out most of his ire on former President Obama's programs. Alcindor's question...
"You said you don’t take responsibility for slow response to coronavirus but your administration disbanded the White House office on pandemics?
President Trump: “That’s a nasty question...When you say me, I didn't do it. We have a group of people [in the administration].”
Whatever the hell that means, except to add another huge lie to the 15,413 he has told since entering the White House. Alcindor adds, "And, finally, Donald Trump is being called out for this supremely boneheaded move." Here's the scenario...
"In a health security crisis, speed is essential. When this new coronavirus emerged, there was no clear White House-led structure to oversee our response, and we lost valuable time. Yes, we have capable and committed global and national disease-prevention and management organizations, as well as state and local health departments, all working overtime now. But even in prepared cities like Seattle, health systems are struggling to test patients and keep pace with growing caseloads. The specter of rapid community transmission and exponential growth is real and daunting. The job of a White House pandemics office would have been to get ahead: to accelerate the response, empower experts, anticipate failures, and act quickly and transparently to solve problems."
There's more...
"A directorate within the White House would have been responsible for coordinating the efforts of multiple federal agencies to make sure the government was backstopping testing capacity, devising approaches to manufacture and avoid shortages of personal protective equipment, strengthening U.S. lab capacity to process covid-19 tests, and expanding the health-care workforce.
The office would galvanize resources to coordinate a robust and seamless domestic and global response. It would identify needs among state and local officials, and advise and facilitate regular, focused communication from federal health and scientific experts to provide states and the public with fact-based tools to minimize the virus’s spread. The White House is uniquely positioned to take into account broader U.S. and global security considerations associated with health emergencies, including their impact on deployed citizens, troops and regional economies, as well as peace and stability. A White House office would have been able to elevate urgent issues fast, so they didn’t linger or devolve to inaction, as with coronavirus testing in the United States."
It is perfectly clear who is responsible, at least for a major part, for the current coronavirus dilemma. READ MORE...
In the coronavirus pandemic there are hoarders on the one side,,,and then you have the greedy who just buy to fleece the public...
Empty store shelves in New York city
We were in Walmart recently shopping for the deals we usually buy there, when my wife decided to look for toilet paper, just in case. The shelf where it should have been was completely empty. Bare. A store employee standing close by remarked, 'Nothing, nada, we've had a run on toilet paper. One guy bought a whole pallet and said he planned to sell it on E-Bay.' We asked when they restock and he replied with the day and added 'You'd better get here early.'
And then my wife was in Costco and was told by a store employee that they were rationing products that were scarce, because the, shall we call them 'eager' buyers had emptied some locations of select merchandise. Now that's an idea, do what the alarmed public is never able to do, reasonably limit ourselves. The same thing happens in hurricanes, tornadoes. So now my family has decided to shop for two weeks when we would normally shop for one. If there's a massive run on goods that can only result in a dangerous panic.
But there is another problem in addition to shortages of food and essential items. Here's a report from the Washington Post...
"The companies that feed America and provide basic staples are bracing for labor shortages as the novel coronavirus pandemic intensifies, which could leave them without enough workers to manufacture, deliver and unpack groceries in stores in the coming months."
Good video on hoarding pros and cons...
Industry officials say...
"there is generally enough nonperishable food on shelves, in warehouses and on the production line to last several months, but the challenge could soon be getting that food to the right places once local distribution centers are wiped out."
Due to profitability, which has prompted "slimming down on inventory instead of stockpiling backrooms," there is concern if factories don't produce and ports don't have the manpower to move products through the system. The entire country has experienced the tightening of our waists and that includes the workforce. Here's a remark from Mark Cohen, director of retail studies at Columbia Business School and the former chief executive of Sears Canada...
“We’ve whittled down the inefficiencies to the point where logical and orderly demand creates logical and orderly resupply. But this is a different situation: This is serial hoarding — and no part of the machine that supplies consumers is geared for this."
Does hoarding indicate some form of mental illness?...
"Compulsive hoarding was commonly considered to be a type of OCD. ... Compulsive hoarding is also considered a feature of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) and may develop along with other mental illnesses, such as dementia and schizophrenia."
A mentally challenged left spews conspiracy theories, a must read...
That isn't true of the guy who bought the pallet of toilet paper at Walmart' he's just greedy. And I'm not sure it is a reasonable study of someone in panic mode when faced by a disease that is affecting the world in a pandemic, causing thousands of deaths. I think it is closer to desperation to make sure your family is adequately taken care of. But desperation can lead to panic, which can result in unnecessary shortages because of a select group.
It's education that's needed, and so far that is not forthcoming from the Trump administration or his staff. Those you can depend on are Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases who has been with the National Institutes of Health for more than 50 years.
The Oval Office lunatic spends all his time boasting what a great job he is doing and repeatedly saying "it'll go away." And the minions that work for Trump aren't bright enough nor have the strength to stand up to him so the propaganda continues to flow. Here's the scenario...
"There are already signs of far-reaching shortages: Shelves of hand sanitizer and disinfecting sprays have remained empty for weeks across the country. Amazon is largely sold out of toilet paper, with shipments that were due to be delivered earlier this week delayed indefinitely. Costco’s website, meanwhile, is out of peanut butter and canned tomatoes, and has removed its online listing for Kirkland brand baby wipes."
One has to assume that much of the panic is caused by the "Idiot" running the show and his number two flunky, Mike Pence, put in charge of things. Because Trump himself is complete confused over the issue, the American public is befuddled and dazed, completely bewildered over what to do. And these same people can't seem to come to grips with the fact that nothing will get better until we get rid of Donald Trump. Keep this in mind when you vote in November.
HEADLINE: "White House Says Up To 4,000 Coronavirus Tests A Day To Start This Week"...
This was announced on Sunday. This is Monday and we'll see how much action we get from the "promiser" who hasn't kept his word on much of anything since his inauguration. Keep tuned and...READ MORE...
Donald Trump doesn't want to meet with hospital officials because he knows he doesn't know what the hell he's doing.
This always works
And, yes, most hospital heads realize Trump hasn't a clue about fighting the coronavirus dilemma but are desperate for help. Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top player in Trump's coronavirus task force said the virus...
"has said that the US has 'not reached our peak,' in terms of novel coronavirus cases, adding that there will be more cases and more deaths, primarily among vulnerable older individuals."
The latest count is "2,885 cases of coronavirus in the US and the disease has resulted in at least 60 deaths." But Fauci isn't getting tested for the virus until there are symptoms, which he advises we all should do...READ MORE...
New York times coronavirus predictions warning us of what could come...
The status of coronavirus across the world...
Most people poo poo predictions because they have learned there is little or no credibility behind them. You probably should pay attention here since the source is The New York Times and a group of epidemiologists they selected to create a computer model that produces 'what if' results in the handling of the virus. They no doubt used artificial intelligence (AI) in their model which is very dependable. Here's the scenario...
"Working with infectious disease epidemiologists, we [NY Times] developed this interactive tool that lets you see what may lie ahead in the United States and how much of a difference it could make if officials act quickly. (The figures are for America, but the lessons are broadly applicable to any country.)"
Keep in mind here the key words are "if officials act quickly." They haven't and the Trump administration shows no signs yet of solid competence in the issue. Try it, but you won't like what you see if you choose the less aggressive approach, which is the current course. The main thing to take from this is the fact that while Donald Trump and his number two henchman run this program, there will be no aggressive action...just more incompetence...READ MORE...
When we quarantine trump, we must also take away his phone...
What the hell, I'm going to Mar-a-Lago
The headline statement was made by Lucian K. Truscott IV of AlterNet and is accompanied by the statement that, "Thousands of people are going to die, he knows he will be blamed and he can already see his campaign circling the toilet." But he's helpless because, the headline gain, "He’s confused, ignorant and afraid." And this moron sits in the Oval Office, the one that controls the free world.
Truscott says you could see it on his face last Wednesday night when he made his ridiculous and befuddled speech to the American people. I didn't watch since I have completely given up on the White House maniac that hasn't come up with a new, constructive thought since his inauguration. A quarantine would require a strait jacket and the men in the white suits, which should have been sent in long ago. A terrified man cannot run a highly civilized country like America.
“He’s an idiot. He’s handled it horribly. When things are rough, you want somebody who can exude confidence and competence and Trump does not do that.
“We’ve been incredibly lucky. For the last three years, there was nothing big going on that had a real bearing on the lives of the ordinary American. This does.”
All his professional life he has repelled the experts who advise him, who are rebuffed in favor of the attitude, 'no one knows anything better than me.' Here's his comment when signing the congressional emergency spending bill...
“We’re doing very well,” he insisted. “But it’s an unforeseen problem. What a problem. Came out of nowhere, but we’re taking care of it.” He gazed around the oval-shaped room, wallpapered romantic American landscapes, and took questions. Someone asked: “How do you keep people from panicking?” Trump’s response in part: “Calm. You have to be calm. It’ll go away.
It'll go away? It didn't go away in China, It didn't go away in Italy. And it is not going away in the United States. That is because we have two "idiots" in charge of trying to control this dilemma. This is not a good thing for Americans...READ MORE...
Donald Trump completely ignored warnings and the public's welfare in early stages of coronavirus outbreak...
Dan Diamond from Politico drops the hammer on the Oval Office lunatic in exposing his instructions to health care staff during the beginning of the coronavirus dilemma...
Trump was warned “the new coronavirus could be a major problem,” but “made clear – the lower the numbers on coronavirus… the better for his potential reelection.”
The word 'unconscionable' has been used at length recently to describe the actions that come from the White House, and it is still a more than credible description of what is and has been going on there. Yet, a Republican Congress still bows at the feet of this idiot with no remorse for their behavior. Pathetic!
Could there be worldwide drug shortages due to the virus? One example is the popular antidepressant, Prozac, which has some ingredients that come from China that are supplied to other countries to manufacture this medication. They are called active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and China is the lead supplier of these around the world. With the coronavirus outbreak just beginning to slow down there, it is not yet known if there will be shortages...READ MORE...
The White House is in chaos over coronavirus and the staff blames Mike Pence. It seems that Trump's number two cannot "get a handle" on priorities in order to get the process rolling. The reason for that is that he hasn't clue to what he's doing, as was evidenced by his incompetent response to an HIV outbreak in Indian when he was governor. It's like a three-ring circus since there is no one in the Trump administration capable of making competent decisions... READ MORE...
And if you can believe this, Jared Kushner and Stephen Miller wrote Trump’s coronavirus speech given last Wednesday evening that been deemed a complete wrecking ball to the U.S. response to the disease. To begin with, it "tanked" markets that were already in a nosedive and second, he portrayed the virus as a "foreign" attack, rather than rightfully taking the blame himself. The administration's credibility now looks damaged beyond control...READ MORE...
Old crazy Lamar Alexander
"Unconscionable" is what Moscow Mitch's Senate is being called for allowing Tennessee's Lamar Alexander to block the vote on an emergency paid sick leave bill because "the bill would be an “expensive” and burdensome mandate for employers." The Republican Congress continues to stoop to equal depths as the White House manic that is supposed to be running the show. And this plan even falls "far short of sick leave policies in many other industrialized nations."... READ MORE...
"Computer scientists predict that America will be in lockdown in less than two weeks as the country scrambles to contain COVID-19." The prediction is partially based on the lockdown in Italy last Tuesday, and should prompt the question of whether or not some of the computer's computation might have had something to do with the incompetence of the Trump administration in handling the U.S. coronavirus outbreak. This from Mark Handley, Professor of Networked Systems at UCL in London...READ MORE...
"President Donald Trump’s new European travel restrictions have a convenient side effect: They exempt nations where three Trump-owned golf resorts are located."
This is way beyond, 'can you believe this?' Protecting his profits in lieu of protecting the American public. Just ludicrous!
Donald Trump tries to paint a rosy picture of the coronavirus pandemic rather than addressing its real status and working towards a solution...
The White House dufus might as well have stayed in the residence and tweeted out more malarky rather than get before a television audience of millions and make a fool of himself. That, plus complete confusion on his plans, which seem to just flee off the top of his head while he's talking. Here is what he said...
The chance coronavirus doesn't have against us is already past the point of threatening the United States with over 1,000 cases and 33 deaths from the virus. And the fact that this is increasing regularly. T-rump thinks a travel ban will be his liberator, but as he implements band-aids like this, American citizens go untested. 1,900 in U.S. compared to 140,000 in South Korea. Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois commented...
"I don't think anyone is going to leave that briefing [Thurs. for both chambers of Congress] satisfied with what's going on with testing right now ... bottom line, you leave that briefing and we are not where we need to be and not sure when we are going to get there. We are flying blind."
With coronavirus now deemed a pandemic by WHO, Donald Trump is hiding certain pertinent info on the disease from staff, Americans and the world...
Just when transparency is the most needed, the Oval Office lunatic has decided to classify "top-level coronavirus meetings," where decisions are made and judgments decided that should be known throughout the government structure. It is also information that should be shared with the American public and made available to other world leaders to help contain the virus. Here's the scenario...
"officials said that dozens of classified discussions about such topics as the scope of infections, quarantines and travel restrictions have been held since mid-January in a high-security meeting room at the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), a key player in the fight against the coronavirus."
Reuter's reported, "Staffers without security clearances, including government experts, were excluded from the interagency meetings." An official commented...
“We had some very critical people who did not have security clearances who could not go. These should not be classified meetings. It was unnecessary.”
Hiding "the scope of infections" from those charged with maintaining control of coronavirus seems unconscionable in light of Donald Trump's completely inept response to the situation from the beginning, just adding more roadblocks to bringing it under control in the United States. According to CNBC it was...
"the National Security Council (NSC), which advises the president on security issues, ordered the classification. “This came directly from the White House.”
Only the "proles" can defeat Donald Trump in November...
By putting a lid on specific information, it could delay response to the crisis. It also illustrates to what lengths Donald Trump will go to protect his favorability rating leading into November. And then an NSC spokesman confused the issue by defending the administration's move but with a mixed reply on...
"transparency across federal agencies and noted that meetings of the administration’s task force on the coronavirus all are unclassified. It was not immediately clear which meetings he was referring to."
Here's CNBC's opinion of the Trump administration on coronavirus transparency...
"Critics have hammered the Trump administration for what they see as a delayed response to coronavirus outbreaks and a lack of transparency, including sidelining experts and providing misleading or incomplete information to the public. State and local officials also have complained of being kept in the dark about essential federal response information."
Gregg Gonsalves, a Yale epidemiologist who has been publicly critical of Trump's response to the coronavirus outbreak, tweeted Wednesday that Trump's order to classify coronavirus meetings shows the president is "trying to cover his tracks" as he continues to face backlash over his handling of the outbreak.
"Yes, Donald Trump has botched the response to coronavirus pandemic," said Gonsalves. "But classifying deliberations makes it harder for health experts in government without security clearances to be in key meetings."
"This is unprecedented, unnecessary, and damages our ability to respond to the pandemic," Gonsalves added.
In George Orwell's 1984, in the beginning, the government would pick and choose what information it wanted the Proles to know. Then it swooped down and they were surrounded by a world of complete disinformation, controlling everything they were to know.
World Health Organization declares the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic
According to WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, it is not only the spread of the disease that prompts this move, but the inaction of some countries to take action to stop it. There are more throughout the world, but WHO must have the dominance of the United States in mind and the fact that, so far, the Donald Trump administration has been completely incompetent in the handling of the virus here.
Dr. Ghebreyesus comments...
“We’re deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction,” he said, just before declaring the pandemic. “We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear.”
Donald Trump's bell has been rung repeatedly but he is never there... READ MORE...
Good for Progressives, good for the country, Senate challenger Mark Kelly over Martha McSally by twelve points...
Senate candidate Mark Kelly
As a zoni, I welcome astronaut and husband of former representative Gabby Giffords to a Republican controlled state (so far) and hopefully a Senate seat that will help the chamber go Democratic in November. Give what's his name? Moscow Mitch McConnell the boot...READ MORE...
