The COVID-2019 Thread

[cyrille]

Bozo owns Amazon and the hen he buys the the Washington Post

Apparently that can't be brought up in this thread.

Yes, clearly it is a bit of a struggle.

[OhOh]

In other news:

The World Health Organisation has officially approved an independent evaluation of its response to the coronavirus pandemic, as proposed by the European Union.

The EU resolution did not receive a single objection from the WHO’s 194 member states at a meeting today. The evaluation will begin as soon as possible.
WHO approves independent investigation of its pandemic response

Presumably you and your "other news source", are referring to this resolution by the WHA, calling and accepted by the WHO of a WHO managed evaluation.

Conf. Paper.


SEVENTY-THIRD WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY A73/CONF./1 Rev.1 Agenda item 3 18 May 2020

COVID-19 response

Draft resolution proposed by Albania, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, Georgia, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the African Group and its Member States, the European Union and its Member States, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Uruguay

OP9.10 Initiate, at the earliest appropriate moment, and in consultation with Member States,

1 a stepwise process of impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation, including using existing mechanisms,

2 as appropriate, to review experience gained and lessons learned from the WHO-coordinated international health response to COVID-19, including

(i) the effectiveness of the mechanisms at WHO’s disposal;

(ii) the functioning of the IHR and the status of implementation of the relevant recommendations of the previous IHR Review Committees;

(iii) WHO’s contribution to United Nations-wide efforts; and (iv) the actions of WHO and their timelines pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic, and make recommendations to improve global pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response capacity, including through strengthening, as appropriate, WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme;

WHA73
Which differs somewhat from you/your source alleges.

Proposed not just by the EU, but the what looks like the whole WHA, but not unsurprisingly by ameristan. Calling the WHO to manage an evaluation ......Somewhat different to, the jury rigged and exclusive MH17 type debacle, as the resolution by ameristan and another of it's vassals desired, an investigation of China.

So why is China so opposed to an investigation into their handling of the outbreak?

As called for in the resolution, "in consultation with Member States". Some have shown excellent reactions, preparedness ....There are others whose handling of the pandemic have things that need investigating/rectifying/adopted.

Why limit the investigation to only one named country?

Or are you suggesting China is the only country whose actions were correct or are to be investigated/learnt from/modified/praised?

[misskit]

New Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows coronavirus conspiracy theories spreading on the right may hamper vaccine efforts

According to a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll, 44 percent of Republicans believe that Bill Gates is plotting to use a mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign as a pretext to implant microchips in billions of people and monitor their movements — a widely debunked conspiracy theory with no basis in fact.


The survey, which was conducted May 20 and 21, found that only 26 percent of Republicans correctly identify the story as false.


In contrast, just 19 percent of Democrats believe the same spurious narrative about the Microsoft founder and public-health philanthropist. A majority of Democrats recognize that it’s not true.


As states relax their lockdown restrictions and responsibility for containing the coronavirus shifts, in part, to the American people, the vast gap between the right and the left over Gates reflects a growing problem: the dangerous, destabilizing tendency to ignore fundamental facts about the deadly pathogen in favor of misinformation peddled by partisans, including President Trump, and spread on social media.


That tendency is more widespread on the right, although liberals also believe some false narratives (including that COVID-19 deaths have already surged in states that were quick to reopen).

MORE New Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows coronavirus conspiracy theories spreading on the right may hamper vaccine efforts

[harrybarracuda]

What are you waffling about now Hoohoo? Let me know if you need help with any of the big words.

World Health Organization member states agreed Tuesday to an independent probe into the UN agency's coronavirus response as US criticism mounted over its handling of the pandemic.

Countries taking part in the WHO's annual assembly, being held virtually for the first time, adopted a resolution by consensus urging a joint response to the crisis.

The resolution, tabled by the European Union, called for an "impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation" of the international response to the pandemic, which has so far infected more than 4.8 million people and killed over 318,000.

It said the investigation should include a probe of "the actions of WHO and their time-lines pertaining to the Covid-19 pandemic".

<snip>

Tuesday's resolution at the WHO assembly — which is not binding and mentioned no countries by name — also called for nations to commit to ensuring "transparent, equitable and timely access" to any treatments or vaccines developed against Covid-19.

And it addressed the controversial issue of the origin of the virus, which first emerged in China late last year, urging the WHO to help investigate "the zoonotic source of the virus and the route of introduction to the human population".

WHO members agree to independent investigation of Covid-19 response

[harrybarracuda]

Reopening is entering a risky new phase as some states open up even as coronavirus cases continue to rise.
At the same time, public health experts are acknowledging that stay-at-home orders cannot last forever amid rising fears of economic devastation and are instead urging a slow and measured approach to reopening as the country moves forward.
“I don’t want people to think that any of us feel that staying locked down for a prolonged period of time is the way to go,” Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said on CNBC on Friday. “We had to do that when we had the explosion of cases, but now is the time, depending upon where you are and what your situation is, to begin seriously looking at reopening the economy, reopening the country, to try and get back to some degree of normal.”
As most of the country moves to reopen in some way, there is a wide variation in how states are faring. Some sparsely populated states, such as Montana and Vermont, have been doing relatively well throughout the crisis, and some larger states, such as Washington, have gotten high marks for tamping down the virus.
Other states that had large outbreaks, such as New York and Massachusetts, are now seeing declines in new cases but are proceeding slowly and cautiously in reopening. Some reopening states, such as Georgia and Missouri, have so far avoided spikes in cases.
On the other hand, there are warning signs in states such as Alabama, Arkansas and North Carolina, which are reopening even amid a rise in new cases.
“I have concerns if cases are continuing to go up and you're actually jumping over some of the benchmarks that we put in the recommendations,” Fauci said in the CNBC interview. The White House guidelines for reopening call for a 14-day decline in new cases.
Alabama has sparked particular concern in recent days after the mayor of Montgomery warned that the city had only one intensive care unit bed available.
Gov. Kay Ivey (R), though, is proceeding with a plan to have movie theaters and bowling alleys reopen this weekend with precautions. Restaurants and bars are already open in the state.
Ivey said at a press conference Thursday that “our numbers are not as good as we would hope” but that it is time to reopen.
“Just as we've had to learn to live with the flu and other viruses for which there is no known cure, it's not realistic to think we are going to be able to keep everyone totally isolated from each other forever,” she said.
Arkansas on Wednesday had its highest one-day jump in new cases yet, of 455. About half were in correctional facilities, and half were in the broader community.
North Carolina has also seen rising cases even as it announced it was entering phase two of its reopening plan this weekend, allowing businesses such as restaurants and hair salons to open with limited capacity.
These states note that one reason for the increases could be that testing is ramping up, and therefore more cases are being identified.
Still, North Carolina Health Secretary Mandy Cohen said at a new conference Thursday, “I would have liked to see this trend starting to level, but it has not yet done that.”
On the other hand, Georgia, which drew national attention and concern over its early reopening, has not seen a spike in cases yet, though it is possible one could still come.
The divergent scenarios have left experts unclear to some degree as to why some reopening states are seeing resurgences but others are not.
“There are places I worry,” Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, said Thursday on a live chat hosted by PBS.
“I've been very worried about Georgia. They opened early with a lot of cases, and it seems at least two-plus weeks in that they haven't seen a surge, and that's great,” he said. “Texas has opened, and they are seeing a rising number of cases. So what I expect is going to happen is over the next couple of weeks the picture will become clearer.”
Experts say the country is more prepared to deal with the virus now than it was when the stay at home orders began in March. Testing still needs to be ramped up significantly, but it has also improved markedly from when the country was mostly blind to the outbreak in February and March.
States have also been working to hire contact tracers, who together with testing can help hunt down outbreaks and stamp them out, allowing the virus to be fought without blunt stay-at-home orders when there are relatively low numbers of cases.
“Now states are better informed. States have better capabilities to do contact tracing, to take care of sick patients,” Tom Inglesby, Director of the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University said during a forum on Thursday. “So we're in a different place than we were two months ago, but it's still important for people to recognize things can change quickly with this virus.”

Nationally, cases have declined somewhat from their peak in April but are still high and are not declining substantially.
The virus could also quickly get out of control. Experts say even as businesses reopen, people should continue staying six feet apart, wearing masks in stores and washing their hands.
“A little more than two months, ago we had 100 cases in this country, 100 cases recognized, and now have more than 1.5 million,” Inglesby said. “So things change quickly, and people need to pay attention to that. While this virus may be down in a given place, it's not out necessarily and could come back.”

US enters risky new phase of coronavirus fight | TheHill

[harrybarracuda]

JEDDAH: Large swathes of Iran faced a lethal “second wave” of coronavirus infections on Sunday as the official death toll surged toward 7,000, which it passed on Monday.
The southwestern province of Khuzestan is the new focal point, with the most critical “red” ranking on the country’s color-coded risk scale. “Khuzestan is in a critical situation,” Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said.
Iran stopped publishing provincial figures for the coronavirus last month, but the Health Ministry’s latest report on Sunday said there was a “rising trend, or the beginning of a peak” in eight provinces, including Khuzestan.
Jahanpour said the COVID-19 illness had claimed a further 51 lives over 24 hours into Sunday.
The ministry raised the overall death toll to 6,988 since Iran announced its first fatalities in the pilgrimage city of Qom in February. The number of infections rose by 1,806 to an official total of 120,198, but experts both inside and outside Iran have voiced skepticism about the official figures, and say the real toll is much higher.
Adding fuel to that speculation, organizers of Iran’s annual Quds Day rallies in support of the Palestinians defied President Hassan Rouhani and canceled the events. Rouhani had said on Saturday that the parades would go ahead next Friday with protective measures against the virus, but organizers said on Sunday the rallies could not be held “decently” and would be scrapped, apart from a televised speech by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
As the battle to curb the spread of the virus continued, Saudi Arabia reported 2,736 new cases on Sunday, taking the total to 54,752, and the death toll rose by 10 to 312. Worldwide, the virus has infected about 4.8 million people, and killed nearly 315,000.
People in Kuwait and Qatar face fines or imprisonment from Monday if they refuse to wear face masks.
In Kuwait, the penalty is up to three months in jail and a maximum fine of 5,000 dinars ($16,200).
In Qatar, it is up to three years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of 200,000 riyals ($55,000).
The six Gulf states have reported more than 137,400 infections and 693 deaths from the virus. Qatar, with a population of less than 3 million, has the second-highest infection count at above 32,600, with 15 deaths.
In Lebanon, the movement restrictions and business closures that have compounded the country’s economic crisis will gradually be lifted from Monday, Prime Minister Hassan Diab said.
“We realize that continuing the lockdown has serious economic and social repercussions,” he said.
“We are trying, as much as we can, to minimize these repercussions.”
The prime minister spoke on the last day of a four-day lockdown that went into force on Wednesday night, following a surge in infections. Lebanon has recorded 911 cases of COVID-19, and 26 deaths, but the number of cases spiked late last week, increasing almost five-fold in 10 days.
Before the four-day lockdown, restaurants and cafés had reopened at 30 percent capacity, prayers had resumed at mosques and churches, and many people were back at work.
Despite the easing of restrictions, Diab said that authorities would impose quarantines on neighborhoods and regions with high infection rates to stem the spread of the virus.

Iran faces ‘second wave’ of virus as death toll surges past 7,000 | Arab News

[harrybarracuda]

An interesting article at the link entitled: "Europe's Covid predicament – how do you solve a problem like the anti-vaxxers?"

Well for a start, (once a vaccine is available obviously), a ban an anyone unvaccinated without a doctor's certificate from any form of public transport, and certainly aircraft, should be imposed.

That will have the added bonus of keeping all the whackjobs at home.
Europe's Covid predicament – how do you solve a problem like the anti-vaxxers? | World news | The Guardian

[baldrick]

a ban an anyone unvaccinated

how do you determine if they have been vaccinated ?

put a microchip in the vaccine ?

[jabir]

...SEVENTY-THIRD WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY A73/CONF./1 Rev.1 Agenda item 3 18 May 2020

COVID-19 response

Draft resolution proposed by Albania, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, Georgia, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the African Group and its Member States, the European Union and its Member States, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Uruguay

If you were to turn China upside down and empty its pockets, how many of the Assembly's member states would fall out?

[Latindancer]

^^ Of course ! And the microchips are nano-sized, the same as the nano thermite used in the World Trade Centre. It's all connected, don't you see ?

[OhOh]

If ameristan were to stop threatening, bombing, sanctioning, infecting the world .... how many of the Assembly's member states would cry out in ecstasy?

FIFY.

[Cujo]

An interesting article at the link entitled: "Europe's Covid predicament – how do you solve a problem like the anti-vaxxers?"

Well for a start, (once a vaccine is available obviously), a ban an anyone unvaccinated without a doctor's certificate from any form of public transport, and certainly aircraft, should be imposed.

That will have the added bonus of keeping all the whackjobs at home.
Europe's Covid predicament – how do you solve a problem like the anti-vaxxers? | World news | The Guardian

Impossible. Can you imagine the chaos created trying to inspect everyone's doctors certificate before they're allowed on the train/subway/bus at rush hour.

[Cujo]

how do you determine if they have been vaccinated ?

put a microchip in the vaccine ?

Actually a very common (now) technology exists.
When a person is vacinated their face is scanned and fed into the 'vaccinated' data base.
When attempting to access a place where only vaccinated people are allowed, facial recognition technology is employed.
At my gym, when you sign up they scan your face (Take a photo). To access the gym there is no membership card, your face is scanned and the gate opens automatically when it recognizes you.

[OhOh]

At my gym, when you sign up they scan your face (Take a photo). To access the gym there is no membership card, your face is scanned and the gate opens automatically when it recognizes you.

Which you were happy to accept to enable access to your "gym", when you were photographed to obtain a passport, when entering a foreign country, when entering many offices, shops, official buildings ....

Which of your interactions with others would you decline the face scan usage?

Many countries have access to areas/facilities by a swipe card. I imagine one has to register ones personal card prior to usage. I imagine the data check is quicker than a photograph.

Although others can "borrow" a card from a friend. An inserted chip remedies that.

[harrybarracuda]

how do you determine if they have been vaccinated ?

put a microchip in the vaccine ?

That's a cracking idea.

[harrybarracuda]

Which you were happy to accept to enable access to your "gym", when you were photographed to obtain a passport, when entering a foreign country, when entering many offices, shops, official buildings ....

Which of your interactions with others would you decline the face scan usage?

Many countries have access to areas/facilities by a swipe card. I imagine one has to register ones personal card prior to usage. I imagine the data check is quicker than a photograph.

Although others can "borrow" a card from a friend. An inserted chip remedies that.

Any biometrics will do.

Fingerprint, Iris scan.

I am quite happy for the government to have all this shit which allows me to in and out of Heathrow or Dubai immigration in a matter of minutes.

So it makes it quicker to catch me if I am doing something crooked. Well that's easily solved.

[Cujo]

Which you were happy to accept to enable access to your "gym", when you were photographed to obtain a passport, when entering a foreign country, when entering many offices, shops, official buildings ....

Which of your interactions with others would you decline the face scan usage?

Many countries have access to areas/facilities by a swipe card. I imagine one has to register ones personal card prior to usage. I imagine the data check is quicker than a photograph.

Although others can "borrow" a card from a friend. An inserted chip remedies that.

So you're ok with being required to have a chip 'inserted'.?

[bowie]

I get word from friends and family – USA, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware.

Not a whole lot of happy campers. Have a sister who works at a Manhattan investment company. She, along with their entire office staff, have been telecommuting, working from home. She is quite pleased in that her one-hour commute has been eliminated, for the time being however, she’s going stir crazy over the sheltering in place. Everything is closed down. Only thing open is grocery stores. New Jersey.

Mother stays at home – her big daily excursion is an exercise walk around her apartment complex. My daughter does her grocery shopping for her. She, my mother, has to make a formal appointment with the garden apartment staff to drop off her rent check. Her apartment is opposite the office. A two-minute walk. But, to follow the established protocol, she must request an appointment time and date by phone or computer.

My VFW District reports my old home Post lost two people to Covid – both were elderly Korea Veterans who I knew personally, both were in poor health. I doubt that both just happened to get exposed to Covid – but, that is what the District Commander told me. Most of our working VFW members were either laid off or had their hours significantly cut back. Pennsylvania

All in all a very bleak picture is being painted of the tri-state area I hail from. Everything is shut down, massive lay offs. Very few unaffected folk. Serious financial damage occurring to the families. Yet, very few, if any, Covid infected persons. Other than the two Vets that passed away in the previous paragraph – reportedly of Covid. Again, both were elderly and in poor health. It does make me wonder if they really are Covid casualties.

But, reported on all fronts is a great deal of dismay and angst concerning all aspects of the sheltering in place, restricted travel, face masks, etc.

[bowie]

back to normal for the rest of us.

Where are you camped out and what is your back to normal versus current day-to-day?

[prawnograph]

New York Times exposes staggering death toll in powerful front page

The US will soon have lost 100,000 people to coronavirus, a heartbreaking milestone for the country.

The New York Times summed up the staggering loss in a heartbreaking front page, listing 1000 of the Americans who had lost their lives to the virus.

“They were not simply names on a list, they were us,” the front page reads, describing the deaths as an “incalculable loss”.

The US leads the world with a reported 1.6 million coronavirus cases and more than 96,000 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

[HuangLao]

^ ....and, I'm sure they still can't figure out why they're the clear and overwhelming leader in so called documented cases and deaths.

Outside of the confounded politics and general unpreparedness, it's a broader societal thing.
Don't get it.


Exceptional, enlightened and developed.
Indeed.

[OhOh]

So you're ok with being required to have a chip 'inserted'.?

Not of choice.

I'm suggesting that people are monitored in a variety of ways and for different reasons. Here in Thailand every trip, by a foreigner, to spend a night away from home is required to be reported. Any government officer can ask you to prove your address, demands of multiple photos of family members are demanded, an immigration/police/Thai secret service officer can knock on your door and demand entry ....

Yet I stay.

Will similar demands be made of every countries citizens or is there any need, as most have a chip in their pocket, phone, already or a "handy" tube card.

Are they monitored? Do they notice rather than my normal tube to the office I've caught one from a distant station and a week later have not sent a "family visit" overnight stay notice elsewhere?

Will they send a summons/request, in Chinese, for an interview at Thames House, Millbank?

Every countries citizens of interest are already monitored. Every keystroke you send over the internet is monitored, once one becomes, a person of interest.

Live your life rather than cowering under the bed.

I'm more worried about my wife when she has the cleaver

in her hand, during her monthly tensions.

[Pragmatic]

Here in Thailand every trip, by a foreigner, to spend a night away from home is required to be reported.

The rule was if you go out of your province for more than 24 hours you had to report, using a TM30. I believe that has now died a death?

[bowie]

^^^ And, from the New York Times article (dated today May 24, 2020) we have this excerpt "For the first time since late March, New York recorded fewer than 100 COVID-19 deaths — 84 lives were lost. That compares to 590 deaths in NYC on the deadliest day of the outbreak in early April.”


Now, back to the worldindata graph from the European CDC – this is where we sit today. As we tentatively start to reopen economies.

http://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus




So, we have a downward trend in deaths. As economies start to reopen, or, as restrictions are removed and/or laxed. We have a metric to judge the timeliness of easing the restrictions.

Now, should the trend in reductions of deaths reverse, we should, reimplement restrictions to reinstate the trend.

However, our leaders, our shot callers, may well decide that the revival of our damaged economies out weights the cost in lives.

At this point in time, no decision needs to be made, the next few weeks will be both critical and revealing…

[bowie]

The rule was if you go out of your province for more than 24 hours you had to report, using a TM30. I believe that has now died a death?

Yup, Prag, a most definite maybe - an entirely unenforceable regulation.

TM30 "Notification from for house-master, owner or the possessor of the residence where alien has stayed"

I've registered on-line (for my wife) and complete the TM30 on-line every time I return. Same as my 90 day reports - a cakewalk. The only problem is that it is so simplistic I may well forget one day. Too bad... I'll have to face the severe consequences being the falang who is at fault - not my wife the owner of the house who is responsible and really could not care less.