Dr Strangetroll : or how I learned to stop arguing and be amused by the intransigence

[MurphyGuy]

For anyone who thinks the pandemic is over:

My buddy is a landscaper, mostly cuts grass, does some snow clearing.. Work alone, has so many customer he turns down business.

One of his customers (wife), said her husband has been in the hospital since Tuesday. The guy went to the doctor because he had a sore throat, though it might be Covid or something.

Turns out, he has stage 4 cancer that has moved to his spinal cord and some other places. So he's in the hospital right now and he's in laying in a hallway because all the rooms are occupied. The entire ICU is full of Covid patients.

 

[Cdkipp]

For anyone who thinks the pandemic is over:

My buddy is a landscaper, mostly cuts grass, does some snow clearing.. Work alone, has so many customer he turns down business.

One of his customers (wife), said her husband has been in the hospital since Tuesday. The guy went to the doctor because he had a sore throat, though it might be Covid or something.

Turns out, he has stage 4 cancer that has moved to his spinal cord and some other places. So he's in the hospital right now and he's in laying in a hallway because all the rooms are occupied. The entire ICU is full of Covid patients.

Yes we took a neighbor to the hospital a couple weeks ago because he was faint. Turns out he was in a afib and had a suspicious spot on his lung. They did not have a bed for him and could not transfer him for follow up tests. Just had him sit in ER a couple days. Scary.

 

[Cdkipp]

McCain said he wanted the US to go to war against Syria. That is why I voted for Obama.
Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Price. For being elected. He later ordered an act of war against Libya (which only Congress had authority to do).
I was expecting to say that Trump's greatest accomplishment was getting a woman elected to the White House. Instead, Hillary's greatest accomplishment was getting Trump elected.
Trump ordered an act of war against Syria (which only Congress had authority to do.)
Biden did withdraw the US. from a 20 year long stalemate war. I think Americans there should have taken a "vacation" elsewhere to see how things went.
It is not at all clear to me that Biden is actually behind anything the administration does.

I think a lot of the credit goes to James Comey for getting Trump elected. Biden wanted to pull troops when Obama was President so I am pretty sure he is still calling the shots.

 

[Hedges]

For anyone who thinks the pandemic is over:

The entire ICU is full of Covid patients.

What city?

For Santa Clara county, data shows a turn up in the graph, but presently 1430 Covid "ICU positive patients".
One year ago, it was at a peak of 4868 patients 1/10/21 (up from 1433 11/24/20)
So presently no where near the same level, but could get there in weeks if curve continues up.

What I don't follow is "Available ICU beds", which doesn't follow some total ICU beds minus "ICU positive patients".
This curve is more flat, as if other patients waiting in the wings keep it full, or beds are created and destroyed as needed.
Well, there are step functions 4/27/20 and 7/20/20. Tents in the parking lot? And maybe as the high peak receded, other patients moved in.

Tableau

 

[bradbill]

For Santa Clara county, data shows a turn up in the graph, but presently 1430 Covid "ICU positive patients".

If its Santa Clara county in CA, there is a reason for that...one of the highest vaccinated areas in the state. A year ago...there were no vaccines yet.

 

[bradbill]

More thinniing of the herd:

Anti-Vax Podcaster Dies Of COVID-19 After Attending Right-Wing Rally

He was a "great father," his daughter Amanda Kuzma told The Daily Beast.

www.huffpost.com

Great father but overall lousy human being.

 

[Hedges]

If its Santa Clara county in CA, there is a reason for that...one of the highest vaccinated areas in the state. A year ago...there were no vaccines yet.

It's the demographics.

37% of population is Asian, but only 15% of cases are among Asians.

Demographics of Cases and Deaths - Emergency Operations Center - County of Santa Clara

covid19.sccgov.org

Asians have the highest vaccination rate of any major group here.

COVID-19 Vaccinations Among County Residents Dashboard - Emergency Operations Center - County of Santa Clara

covid19.sccgov.org

We've read that Covid hit latino and black populations harder.
But in Santa Clara County, percentage of cases that are blacks is smaller than their percentage of the population.
Among latino, cases are elevated.

San Jose was incorporated as a Spanish city just one year after the United States became a nation.
But most blacks in the area would have moved here recently for work or school.

Oakland, in contrast, has a population reflecting its previously having many port workers, an industry that hasn't provided much employment for many years.

In Oakland, vaccine doses are reaching fewer Black and Latino people

Health advocates say inequities in vaccine distribution are a problem, but it would be much worse without grassroots groups and clinics.

oaklandside.org

Both vaccination rate and exposure appear to vary with education and profession, which in turn vary along racial/ethnic lines differently in different locations.

 

[MurphyGuy]

What city?

For Santa Clara county, data shows a turn up in the graph, but presently 1430 Covid "ICU positive patients".
One year ago, it was at a peak of 4868 patients 1/10/21 (up from 1433 11/24/20)
So presently no where near the same level, but could get there in weeks if curve continues up.

What I don't follow is "Available ICU beds", which doesn't follow some total ICU beds minus "ICU positive patients".
This curve is more flat, as if other patients waiting in the wings keep it full, or beds are created and destroyed as needed.
Well, there are step functions 4/27/20 and 7/20/20. Tents in the parking lot? And maybe as the high peak receded, other patients moved in.

Tableau

Southeast Michigan (Detroit metro area)

The outer layer of the virus is composed of lipids (fat). Fat breaks down under UV light as well as heat so southern latitudes will most likely do better if all other conditions are the same.

I think this is also why flu season is a winter thing.

 

[Hedges]

In the first year of the pandemic, while still winter up here, people pointed out the spreading in Southern hemisphere.
I figured the surge at end of 2020 was due to people getting together for Thanksgiving and Christmas more than the weather.

Detroit, like Oakland, has a large population descended from those who used to work in the local industry.
The following report shows disparity of education, and Covid impact, black vs. white. Asian not shown, maybe insignificant population.

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/coronavirus/Detroit_Covid_report_final_718753_7.pdf

And then of course vaccine acceptance varies with profession. Many police, firemen, nurses have rejected vaccination.
There seem to be cultural as well as education level correlation with acceptance.

What is ironic is the fear that the vaccine was intended for ethnic cleansing, when it was so eagerly accepted by the educated and well off white and Asian population. Not entirely unfounded given past US government and research industry history, but ironic in this case. (And then there is one of the anti-vaxxer claims that this is exactly what it is, but will clean out the other half of the population.)

 

[MurphyGuy]

In the first year of the pandemic, while still winter up here, people pointed out the spreading in Southern hemisphere.
I figured the surge at end of 2020 was due to people getting together for Thanksgiving and Christmas more than the weather.

Detroit, like Oakland, has a large population descended from those who used to work in the local industry.
The following report shows disparity of education, and Covid impact, black vs. white. Asian not shown, maybe insignificant population.

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/coronavirus/Detroit_Covid_report_final_718753_7.pdf

And then of course vaccine acceptance varies with profession. Many police, firemen, nurses have rejected vaccination.
There seem to be cultural as well as education level correlation with acceptance.

What is ironic is the fear that the vaccine was intended for ethnic cleansing, when it was so eagerly accepted by the educated and well off white and Asian population. Not entirely unfounded given past US government and research industry history, but ironic in this case. (And then there is one of the anti-vaxxer claims that this is exactly what it is, but will clean out the other half of the population.)

I think that is one of the most accurate statements I've seen. I think the biggest influence is the educational level and a culture of fear. Heck, even conspiracy is becoming its own culture these days.

Darwinism will get them sorted out.

Wait until the next one.. I bet the next big virus comes along within 5 to 10 years.

There's going to be a lot of post-pandemic research after this is done. They'll study the psychological effects of how they handled the public information issues and I suspect it will be the focus of many dissertations. There's going to be a long train of Ph.D candidates riding that train so it should be interesting to see what we learn studying stupid people..

 

[A.Justice]

What is ironic is the fear that the vaccine was intended for ethnic cleansing, when it was so eagerly accepted by the educated and well off white and Asian population. Not entirely unfounded given past US government and research industry history, but ironic in this case.

I'm a felon. Before I finished probation, my probation officer asked me at every appointment if I wanted to get a vaccine through them. Last time they mandated vaccines for felons, they gave them all syphilis and watch them die. No thanks.

 

[MurphyGuy]

I'm a felon. Before I finished probation, my probation officer asked me at every appointment if I wanted to get a vaccine through them. Last time they mandated vaccines for felons, they gave them all syphilis and watch them die. No thanks.

Got a link to that? Sounds like complete made up bull$hit.

 

[A.Justice]

Got a link to that? Sounds like complete made up bull$hit.

The Tuskegee experiments

Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis at Tuskegee and Macon County, AL - Timeline - CDC - OS

Tuskegee Syphilis Study Timeline

www.cdc.gov

I was mistaken, I thought they gave them syphilis. Turns out they gave them fake treatments and pretended it was helping, and then watched them die. Doesn't seem much better to me.

It's not completely off base though, it wouldn't be the first time that the government injected prisoners with something without consent.

Experimentation on prisoners - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The Plutonium Files - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I think I'd rather have syphilis than injected uranium.

 

[A.Justice]

Got a link to that? Sounds like complete made up bull$hit.

US apologizes for ’40s syphilis study in Guatemala

American scientists deliberately infected prisoners and patients in a mental hospital in Guatemala with syphilis 60 years ago, a recently unearthed experiment that prompted U.S. officials to apologize Friday and declare outrage over "such reprehensible research."

www.seattletimes.com

Never mind, I was correct. They did inject people with syphilis, just in a different country.

 

[MurphyGuy]

The Tuskegee experiments

Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis at Tuskegee and Macon County, AL - Timeline - CDC - OS

Tuskegee Syphilis Study Timeline

www.cdc.gov

I was mistaken, I thought they gave them syphilis. Turns out they gave them fake treatments and pretended it was helping, and then watched them die. Doesn't seem much better to me.

It is much better.. while still not right by any moral or ethical measure, there's a big difference between lying and murdering. Blacks didn't have many actual civil rights back then and the greater population with deep seated Christian beliefs still viewed them as sub-human, especially in the south.

We've changed a bit since then.

It's not completely off base though, it wouldn't be the first time that the government injected prisoners with something without consent.

Experimentation on prisoners - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The Plutonium Files - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I think I'd rather have syphilis than injected uranium.

US apologizes for ’40s syphilis study in Guatemala

American scientists deliberately infected prisoners and patients in a mental hospital in Guatemala with syphilis 60 years ago, a recently unearthed experiment that prompted U.S. officials to apologize Friday and declare outrage over "such reprehensible research."

www.seattletimes.com

Never mind, I was correct. They did inject people with syphilis, just in a different country.

I'm not going to sit here and defend our government's actions.. they've done some pretty awful things in the past and continue to do awful things today, just in a different format.

But to think they're trying to use you, and hundreds of millions of other citizens, as lab rats its just being paranoid..

I'm not in favor of mandatory vaccinations, everyone should be free to choose their own path.. but I strongly suggest you get the covid vaccination.. it could save your life.

 

[BMcL]

 

[BMcL]

Blacks didn't have many actual civil rights back then and the greater population with deep seated Christian beliefs still viewed them as sub-human
especially in the south.

Sheesh, you are so biased it's unbelievable !
Democrats were the oppressors of blacks and it was Christians who eventually forced politicians to recognize that "we are ALL EQUAL" in the eyes of our creator.

 

[brb58]

My friend who is a MD in San Diego and is in charge of one of the largest medical groups and hospitals, says education level is a huge part of vaccine hesitancy.

 

[A.Justice]

It is much better.. while still not right by any moral or ethical measure, there's a big difference between lying and murdering. Blacks didn't have many actual civil rights back then and the greater population with deep seated Christian beliefs still viewed them as sub-human, especially in the south.

We've changed a bit since then.





I'm not going to sit here and defend our government's actions.. they've done some pretty awful things in the past and continue to do awful things today, just in a different format.

But to think they're trying to use you, and hundreds of millions of other citizens, as lab rats its just being paranoid..

I'm not in favor of mandatory vaccinations, everyone should be free to choose their own path.. but I strongly suggest you get the covid vaccination.. it could save your life.

I wasn't arguing with you man, I just made a statement about my specific situation, and posted the sources that you asked for. I'm in a very specific demographic (felon, former drug user), that generally hasn't been treated so well in the past. I was just making the point that the government doesn't actually care about anyone, it's all about the money.

I don't think everybody's a lab rat by any means, and I don't think depopulation is the goal. I think the goal is to continue to get everybody to get more vaccines, boosters, and shots so the pharmaceutical companies continue to be paid for them, and stock prices go up. I choose to not be a part of that.

 

[BMcL]

My friend who is a MD in San Diego and is in charge of one of the largest medical groups and hospitals, says education level is a huge part of vaccine hesitancy.

People with a PhD are the most hesitant when it comes to getting the Covid-19 vaccine, according to a paper by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Researchers surveyed just over five million US adults in an online survey, with 10,000 reporting that they were educated to PhD level.

The report showed a surprising U-shaped correlation between willingness to get a Covid vaccine and education level - with the highest hesitancy among those least and most educated.

MSN

Extrapolating from this article, the "most informed" are likely to be vaccine hesistant.

 

[BMcL]

 

[MurphyGuy]

Sheesh, you are so biased it's unbelievable !
Democrats were the oppressors of blacks and it was Christians who eventually forced politicians to recognize that "we are ALL EQUAL" in the eyes of our creator.

The labels of Democrat and Republican mean almost nothing throughout history as the sides have changed as time has changed. A more accurate description would be "liberals" or "progressives" and "conservatives".

The republicans used to be the more liberal party, that has since changed.

It was the southern conservatives that refused to give up their slaves..

The slave industry was based on Christian beliefs genius.. Its even in the bible under Leviticus.. WTF? Do you not even understand your own belief system?
Leviticus 25:44-46
As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.

 

[MurphyGuy]

I wasn't arguing with you man, I just made a statement about my specific situation, and posted the sources that you asked for. I'm in a very specific demographic (felon, former drug user), that generally hasn't been treated so well in the past. I was just making the point that the government doesn't actually care about anyone, it's all about the money.

I don't think everybody's a lab rat by any means, and I don't think depopulation is the goal. I think the goal is to continue to get everybody to get more vaccines, boosters, and shots so the pharmaceutical companies continue to be paid for them, and stock prices go up. I choose to not be a part of that.

The pharmaceutical industry is in business to make money like every other business.. they make their money by providing products to improve and protect the life of people. A person who needs an organ transplant gets anti-rejection drugs, diabetics get insulin, and the pharmaceutical industry profits from these unfortunate conditions by providing products to keep these people alive. Their motive and function for making profit is no different than the NFL, Hollywood production movies, or a gun manufacturer.. the only real difference being that you don't need football, movies, or a gun to keep living, but you do need food, and grocery stores make a profit as well.

My point is that just because they make a profit, doesn't mean they are doing something underhanded.

One other thing to consider.. the gov is paying about $20 per covid dose.. a single day in a hospital ICU bed would cost about $3000, and that's assuming you don't need IV's, or a machine to breath for you. In other words, they'd make a lot more money by letting people get sick.

Its not a conspiracy.. Corporations are in business to provide products and services that people need.. its not fair to get upset when they provide those products and services.

 

[BMcL]

America's Front-Line Doctors supplied a knock-out argument to the SCOTUS today.
Their point :

It is the consensus of the medical community that the currently available Covid-19 vaccine injections do not prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Relevant federal agencies have repeatedly acknowledged this consensus.

Therefore, there is no scientific or legal justification for OSHA to segregate injected and un-injected people. Indeed, since the Covid-19 injections do not confer immunity upon the recipients, but are claimed to merely reduce the symptoms of the disease, they do not fall within the long-established definition of a vaccine at all. They are instead treatments and must be analyzed as such under the law.

 

[BMcL]

MurphyGuy:
The slave industry was based on Christian beliefs genius.. Its even in the bible under Leviticus.. WTF? Do you not even understand your own belief system?
Leviticus 25:44-46
As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.
-------------
So now you're a qualified Bible commentator ? The Old Testament is a history book. It's NOT a book of rules about how we should live.
Jesus taught us and gave us the rules.