A24 if any of my relatives or close friends were dying they would insist that no one came anywhere fucking near them, just as I would if I was dying. Sorry most people dying are not selfish pricks like the people in your hypothetical.
The costs of flattening the curve
Tue, 2020-12-29 21:12
#252
Tue, 2020-12-29 21:33
#253
A24 if any of my relatives or close friends were dying they would insist that no one came anywhere fucking near them, just as I would if I was dying. Sorry most people dying are not selfish pricks like the people in your hypothetical.
That's their call to make. Some people feel differently, and I think it's entirely inappropriate for you or anyone else to pathologize and label as "selfish" anyone who disagrees with you. And by calling someone a "selfish prick," you are the one making the choice to label someone else, and your choice to label someone in such a way says more about you than the person you are labelling.
There are many infectious diseases that are lethal to people in an ICU, and yet people are allowed to be with their families during this time. Maybe some protocols have to be tightened for covid, but I don't see why there has to be a blanket ban on family visits during this time. Put policies and protocols in place. Tell families, "there is a risk from covid, here is what you have to do in case you want to be with your loved one." Then let the families make the choice and support them either way.
Tue, 2020-12-29 22:29
#254
I think nurses, doctors, and health care workers work in the interests of their patients and clients.
Wed, 2020-12-30 12:19
#255
Some time ago, I posted a piece outlining the behavioural failings of the left on lockdown. Let's review some of them:
The ideological failings of the left on lockdown are accompanied by a pronounced tendency to behave in politically-revealing stylistic ways, including:
Belligerence: Converse with most lockdown leftists and you will be struck by their hostility to sceptical views and their lack of respect for the holders of those views. Calm discussion of evidentiary and political differences on lockdown has been replaced by the left’s need to beat down lockdown apostates in heated argument, not with better ideas but with belligerence. In politics, as in fashion, ‘the style is the man’ and the lockdown/woke left’s antagonistic and intimidating behaviour reflects poorly on a political grouping that claims to value liberalism, tolerance and ‘diversity’.
...
Virtue-signalling: Left lockdown lovers portray themselves, overtly or by implication, as a better class of person who is superior to the lockdown sceptic – intellectually superior to those they misrepresent as ‘Deniers’ of ‘The Science’ and morally superior to those whom they caricature as being more concerned with ‘the economy’ over health. We, say the left, may have lost a democratic national referendum or an election but we are still better than the nativists, the xenophobes, the gap-toothed, knuckle-dragging deplorables and, now, the heartless lockdown sceptics who are prepared to cruelly cull society of its old geezers.
By and large, the response of this community to the points I have been making opposing covid restrictions has validated the author's contention.
Wed, 2020-12-30 14:07
#256
Say a family gets together and decides it is worth the risk to spend a loved one's final moments with them. What if it is a child? The final moments of a loved one's life can haunt the living for a lifetime. People take risks all the time when they go extreme skiing and extreme mountain climbing etc. So why not allow people to make their own choice as to what risks they are willing to take for which rewards?
The answer is that they don't only put themselves at risk, they also risk everyone else they come in contact with....unless they are wearing the proper PPEs like health care professionals or go into quarantine, the first of which is more practical.
Everyone on this board, bar none, agrees that this entire pandemic has been mismanaged. Nor does it look like we will learn anything from it. That we still have a shortage of PPEs is ridiculous. Surgical masks uses to be 10 cents a pop.
PPEs are not high tech or labour intensive to produce. If someone is dying surely a few sets of PPEs shouldn't be what keeps them apart from loved ones. The risk to visitors is no greater than it is to health professionals as long as they are properly garbed. Reusable PPEs can be produced. The government can use emergency powers to force manufacturers to produce what we need and not to price gouge. They just aren't doing it. Contact tracing is useless at this point. We need to be testing broadly to find out where it is so we can do targeted lockdowns. Rules keep changing confusing people instead of educating them so they understand the spirit of the rules, why they exist. Politicians and experts were manipulative from the start and it was obvious. If masks didn't work professonals wouldn't need them. Duh. It keeps getting thrown in their faces because it never made sense. Care homes are getting hit again.
I don't agree with A2 concerning lifting restrictions but some of his views flourish for a reason. Our governments are inept at actually running the country.
Wed, 2020-12-30 15:39
#257
And potentially infect and kill themJust like we shouldn't allow gays to run rampant spreading AIDS everywhere, Bacchus?
Seriously, that is a disgusting and offensive thing for you to say. It's not like we don't know that this virus is infectious and potentially fatal, but these are decisions that families need to make themselves without undue interference from you, me, the government, or anyone else. There are all kinds of infectious diseases that kill people, and yet their family members are still often allowed to be near them, especially in their final moments. Why is covid that unique that we have to go to such lengths to keep people separated, even to the point that loved ones are not allowed by the bedsides of family members who are about to pass away? Yes, we need to deal with the covid threat, but there are other things in life besides covid that are important to people, and we have completely forgotten that as a society.
Why have we attached such a stigma to covid, where if it spreads it's because it's someone's fault or someone did something wrong? This is exactly the way people used to stigmatize the gay community around the issue of AIDS in the 1980s, and the left spoke up against it at the time. What's different now?
Covid 19 is far more virulent that the flu. This is why so few people are catching the flu yet many are still catching Covid-19. It is not as virulent as measles, so far, but it is much more virulent than the flu.
This is not about politics or "the left". It is about the sources we trust and our own sense of reason. I trust my local health care providers. The ones on the front lines. Real world evidence in my own community. I then look to the wider world and filter the information based on the reputation of the institution or individual in contrast to or in agreement with other sources. For example. The WHO has gone down a great deal in my estimation because in my opinion they were politicized which undermines their purpose. I trust the information that the new varient in the UK and now around the world is more viralent. I don't think I have yet heard if it is more or less deadly although death is not the only negative outcome.
It is quite possible that it will burn itself out. The scientific community is not ruling it out. A best case scenario would be great. It is just that the other possibility is so bad and so much more likely that we can't risk it.
It seems all it takes to be part of "the left" is to be left of the Republicans.
Wed, 2020-12-30 21:10
#258
Some time ago, I posted a piece outlining the behavioural failings of the left on lockdown. Let's review some of them:
The ideological failings of the left on lockdown are accompanied by a pronounced tendency to behave in politically-revealing stylistic ways, including:
Belligerence: Converse with most lockdown leftists and you will be struck by their hostility to sceptical views and their lack of respect for the holders of those views. Calm discussion of evidentiary and political differences on lockdown has been replaced by the left’s need to beat down lockdown apostates in heated argument, not with better ideas but with belligerence. In politics, as in fashion, ‘the style is the man’ and the lockdown/woke left’s antagonistic and intimidating behaviour reflects poorly on a political grouping that claims to value liberalism, tolerance and ‘diversity’.
...
Virtue-signalling: Left lockdown lovers portray themselves, overtly or by implication, as a better class of person who is superior to the lockdown sceptic – intellectually superior to those they misrepresent as ‘Deniers’ of ‘The Science’ and morally superior to those whom they caricature as being more concerned with ‘the economy’ over health. We, say the left, may have lost a democratic national referendum or an election but we are still better than the nativists, the xenophobes, the gap-toothed, knuckle-dragging deplorables and, now, the heartless lockdown sceptics who are prepared to cruelly cull society of its old geezers.
By and large, the response of this community to the points I have been making opposing covid restrictions has validated the author's contention.
The virus is not the virus to end all viruses. The herd immunity threshold is apparently much lower than expected because of cross-immunity due to the common cold and other coronaviruses. Most people (other than the aged with specific comorbidities) who contract it are either asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms.
This is the kind of bullshit contained in the article you posted. WTF is wrong with you to be republishing fake news during a pandemic. Some idiot might read it and think this person is a credible source.
Thu, 2020-12-31 01:15
#259
Some time ago, I posted a piece outlining the behavioural failings of the left on lockdown. Let's review some of them:
The ideological failings of the left on lockdown are accompanied by a pronounced tendency to behave in politically-revealing stylistic ways, including:
Belligerence: Converse with most lockdown leftists and you will be struck by their hostility to sceptical views and their lack of respect for the holders of those views. Calm discussion of evidentiary and political differences on lockdown has been replaced by the left’s need to beat down lockdown apostates in heated argument, not with better ideas but with belligerence. In politics, as in fashion, ‘the style is the man’ and the lockdown/woke left’s antagonistic and intimidating behaviour reflects poorly on a political grouping that claims to value liberalism, tolerance and ‘diversity’.
...
Virtue-signalling: Left lockdown lovers portray themselves, overtly or by implication, as a better class of person who is superior to the lockdown sceptic – intellectually superior to those they misrepresent as ‘Deniers’ of ‘The Science’ and morally superior to those whom they caricature as being more concerned with ‘the economy’ over health. We, say the left, may have lost a democratic national referendum or an election but we are still better than the nativists, the xenophobes, the gap-toothed, knuckle-dragging deplorables and, now, the heartless lockdown sceptics who are prepared to cruelly cull society of its old geezers.
By and large, the response of this community to the points I have been making opposing covid restrictions has validated the author's contention.
The virus is not the virus to end all viruses. The herd immunity threshold is apparently much lower than expected because of cross-immunity due to the common cold and other coronaviruses. Most people (other than the aged with specific comorbidities) who contract it are either asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms.
This is the kind of bullshit contained in the article you posted. WTF is wrong with you to be republishing fake news during a pandemic. Some idiot might read it and think this person is a credible source.
Here is what he says about his leftist credentials in his piece:
The left’s lockdown betrayal of the working class further accelerates its decline into political irrelevance. This is not a cause for celebration, especially for someone like myself, a four-decade Australian veteran of working class socialism including as a trade union activist, and member of the Communist Party of Australia and more Trotskyist grouplets than you could shake a Program of the Fourth International at, who still cooks on the left burner.
So are we all of a sudden to not question orthodoxy or anything that the left says? Is the left so infallible that any views espoused cannot be questioned or critiqued?
Thu, 2020-12-31 01:19
#260
Dr. Vinay Prasad on forcing people to die alone as a human rights violation
There's another aspect of this that is very troubling. We know that direct human contact can play a huge role in the healing process. How many covid patients who died in the ICU might have lived had someone been able to be with them, hold their hand and say, "I know you'll make it, but you have to keep fighting?"
Fri, 2021-01-01 13:11
#261
How social distancing affects people who are single:
Lockdowns destroy quality of life in the order of acute disease and cause emotional disorders which are often severe. Sadly, that is only the beginning of their health effects. Most countries have put in place permanent social distancing measures that prevent people from hanging out with friends and family. Moreover, distancing policies make it nearly impossible to add to one’s social circle.
With the closure of bars and any club or venue in which people would be in close proximity, along with the universal 2 meter rule, it is next to impossible for people to make new friends or romantic partners. As long as people practice distancing, mandated or voluntary, there will be a large segment of the population that is acutely isolated and lonely. Serial loneliness is the legacy of lockdowns, and few realize its magnitude.
Literature on loneliness indicates that it robs people of approximately 10 years of life, on average. Ten years is also the average decrease in longevity seen by smokers. Obesity, the elephant of developed world health risks, statistically cuts life short by an average of only 2.7 years according to the OECD. The mechanisms by which loneliness results in early death are varied. It seems that loneliness works at least as much by affecting physiology directly as by influencing lifestyle and behaviors.
It is important to note that the studies on loneliness and social isolation center on people who have basically normal lives but lack close friendship and an active social life. The subjects in the studies usually have jobs or attend school in which they regularly interact with others. The social deprivation that people now experience as a result of social distancing is an entirely different animal.
Today, people are either working alone at home or if they go to work, they are forced to stay away from their coworkers. When not at work, they are generally stuck at home, not allowed to even visit family, attend church, participate in a club, or engage in other activities in which the friend-deprived have conventionally been able to get some socialization. More relevant, perhaps, are studies on solitary confinement of prisoners, in which long-term disintegration of the mind and personality are commonplace.
Why not just go online?
It is not possible to adequately mitigate the loneliness epidemic created by social distancing. Internet dating sites do not work well for men; only a small percentage are able to get dates that way. Moreover, people are too afraid to meet in person for fear of catching coronavirus even if they meet someone online that they are interested in. Social psychologists have noted that most relationships, romantic or platonic, emerge from physical proximity, such as attending the same class or church. “Cyber-living” has scant potential to compensate for a withdrawal from the real world. The only solution to prevent loneliness from killing hundreds of millions of people is for civil rights to be reinstated and social distancing to end.
Fri, 2021-01-01 14:19
#262
We all know loneliness is extremely detrimental but unfortunately so is Covid.
Fri, 2021-01-01 14:32
#263
We all know loneliness is extremely detrimental but unfortunately so is Covid.
And loneliness kills people at much younger ages than the average age of death from covid.
God I am sick of this dismissive attitude towards the negative impact of social distancing with this "bud covid!" response.
Fri, 2021-01-01 14:40
#264
You do realize that social distancing is caused by Covid or is that also too inconvenient for you too?
Fri, 2021-01-01 14:58
#265
Social distancing is how most countries have chosen to respond to covid. Belarus has not gone down the social distancing route, and in spite of being at the top of a massive second wave, is not a basketcase of death.
Fri, 2021-01-01 17:42
#266
The only thing that matters is our local health facilities. They are not being overwhelmed by people suffering from economic or social hardships nor are those conditions contagious.
Lifting restrictions will do nothing to help the people suffering from the fallout because within weeks covid cases would be overwhelming our hospitals. We only need look at conditions in our own communities. As soon as the weather drove people indoors cases rose and started stressing the health care system requiring stricter conditions. I knew it was coming long before the government said so. It won't be ending on January 11th either. Between now and April, in Montreal, every loosening restriction will increase the number of hospitalizations within 3 to 6 weeks. Between now and when everyone is vaccinated Legault will be toying with the restrictions because he wants to be fully open as soon as possible. He is trying to maintain a target just below what will cause the system to collapse. He wants stores open and paying taxes.
What I see with my own eyes in my own community, rapid human to human transmission, is widely confirmed by scientists and health care professionals throughout the world.
Outliers do not disprove broadbased observations.
According to Stepan Putilo, an independent Belarusian journalist and owner of the NEXTA Telegram channel, the government had falsified the official data on the COVID-19 pandemic progression in Belarus and published significantly lowered numbers. On 11 May 2020, with reference to "documents from the Presidential Administration of Belarus", NEXTA concluded that a daily gain of more than a thousand COVID-19 cases had been reached "a couple of days ago", while the number of total COVID-19 cases in Belarus was as high as 26,348, with 166 COVID-19 patients requiring assisted ventilation......
On 30 April, the head physician of the Vitebsk Clinical Emergency Hospital, Sergey Lazar, was relieved of his position shortly after the publication of his interview with TuT.By, where he criticized the counter-pandemic measures taken by the government and mentioned the shortage of medical protective equipment.[382][383] According to the press-secretary of the Ministry of Health, Yulia Borodun, Sergey Lazar's dismissal was not related to the publication.[383]
This is why your arguments and links are tedious and boring. No matter how many times we debunk one of your factual claims you come back with it again.
You never deal with the issue of local hospitals and local health care workers claiming they can't deal with the flow.
Fri, 2021-01-01 20:19
#267
And loneliness kills people at much younger ages than the average age of death from covid.
God I am sick of this dismissive attitude towards the negative impact of social distancing with this "bud covid!" response.
I agree with you that living with Covid during the last 10 months has really sucked to say the least. I agree that peoples struggles with social distancing has not been anywhere near adequately acknowledged. I also agree that it's been very hard for younger people to social distance during the most social part of their lives. I do think that Covid has shown us clearly that we need to do more about improving areas of our lives like our mental health systems and many other important areas such as our health care in general, housing, income inequality, the environment and many other things. We need much higher rates for social assistance, disability pensions, and the old age supplement. We need universal childcare. We also need to have Medicare include pharmacare, dentistry, optometry, home care, and long term care. Post-secondary education should basically be free. Minimum wages should be increased. Recreational activities should be open to all people. Hopefully we'll learn from this difficult period together and that will help improve the world for everyone.
Sat, 2021-01-02 08:23
#268
Not views I share but clearly others do:
OCLA Research Report 2020-1
https://ocla.ca/ocla-research-report-2020-1/
"The OCLA has published a research report authored by OCLA researcher Dr Denis Rancourt. The report is entitled 'Criticism of Government Response to COVID-19 in Canada:
'We review the scientific literature about general-population lockdown and social-distancing measures, which is relevant to mitigation policy in Canada. Federal and provincial government responses to and communications about COVID-19 have been irresponsible. The latest research implies that the government interventions to 'flatten the curve' risk causing significant additional cumulative COVID-19 deaths, due to seasonal driving of transmissibility and delayed social immunity..."
Sat, 2021-01-02 20:51
#269
Sat, 2021-01-02 23:49
#270
Not views I share but clearly others do:
OCLA Research Report 2020-1
https://ocla.ca/ocla-research-report-2020-1/
"The OCLA has published a research report authored by OCLA researcher Dr Denis Rancourt. The report is entitled 'Criticism of Government Response to COVID-19 in Canada:
'We review the scientific literature about general-population lockdown and social-distancing measures, which is relevant to mitigation policy in Canada. Federal and provincial government responses to and communications about COVID-19 have been irresponsible. The latest research implies that the government interventions to 'flatten the curve' risk causing significant additional cumulative COVID-19 deaths, due to seasonal driving of transmissibility and delayed social immunity..."
Because they are biased. Their focus is civil liberties not Covid 19. " delayed societal immunity" is herd immunity. The notion of letting people catch Covid to develop herd immunity has been debunked multiple times.
It always comes down to a single question. If we lift all restrictions, can the heath care system survive? If the answer to that were "yes" there would be no restrictions. Politicians would love to be able to open everything up.
Putting up field hospitals is a very bad sign. They can't conjure up staff. It means the system is on the brink.
With restrictions end of January to April are going to be tough. Without restrictions the system would collapse.
Basic facts and basic logic beats theory.
Mon, 2021-01-04 02:44
#271
Not views I share but clearly others do:
OCLA Research Report 2020-1
https://ocla.ca/ocla-research-report-2020-1/
"The OCLA has published a research report authored by OCLA researcher Dr Denis Rancourt. The report is entitled 'Criticism of Government Response to COVID-19 in Canada:
'We review the scientific literature about general-population lockdown and social-distancing measures, which is relevant to mitigation policy in Canada. Federal and provincial government responses to and communications about COVID-19 have been irresponsible. The latest research implies that the government interventions to 'flatten the curve' risk causing significant additional cumulative COVID-19 deaths, due to seasonal driving of transmissibility and delayed social immunity..."
I actually wonder if our attempts to supress the virus over the summer did more harm than good. I don't think there was cause to be concerned about out-of-control spread in the summer because warmer weather tends to supress the spread of respiratory illnesses quite well. I'm wondering if maybe we would have been in a better situation if the virus had not been actively suppressed over the summer. Hospitals generally don't have high numbers of people for respiratory viruses in the summer, and I do think the case load would have been above baseline, but I think the hosptials would have been able to handle additional cases. I also think that things like more outdoor exercise, exposure to the sun from Vitamin D, and even possibly lower viral load from not being inside would have dramatically improved a person's odds against covid over the summer than they would experience now. That may have resulted in a higher level of population immunity to covid once the cooler weather hit, which might have controlled the spread and our numbers wouldn't be so high right now.
Tue, 2021-01-05 00:02
#272
Letting people catch it to create herd immunity has been debunked multiple times. I don't know about other places but in Quebec restrictions were loosened for the summer. Bars opened. People filled the parks. Children attended daycamps.
Tue, 2021-05-04 01:46
#273
Pondering: "because your sole objective seems to be lifting all restrictions immediately." In my view caricaturing people's positions is the real conversation killer.It isn't a caricature. Ask Aristotled himself and he will tell you. He wants mass events like concerts and world festivals to go ahead. No restrictions at all. He thinks it should all be left to the individual to decide and vulnerable individuals can self-isolate if they so choose.
If mass events can go ahead in places like Florida, Texas, and Kentucky, without masking or even widespread vaccination, why can't they go ahead in this country, or any other country for that matter? Especially since no-lockdown Florida did better than many-times-locked-down California?
Tue, 2021-05-04 08:54
#274
Rules are only as good as the people following them and there haven't been any lockdowns in North America except after 8 in Quebec and even then it isn't a full lockdown.
We know that large events can turn into super spreader events, not that they always will. Just because someone survives a car crash without wearing a seatbelt doesn't mean seatbelts are useless.
Tue, 2021-05-04 23:48
#275
We know that large events can turn into super spreader events
Thu, 2021-05-06 18:16
#276
Anti lockdown doctor justifies is reasons:
If you have never had to say: "I'm sorry we didn't let you see your wife for the last ten days; she suddenly passed away," or "I'm sorry the hospital will not allow you to hold your newborn for 2 weeks." then you might not be understanding my criticism of pandemic policy.
Of course, people who support social distancing, lockdowns, and business closures that result in these things happening are the loudest to shout about how compassionate and caring they are when it comes to their fellow human beings. You can claim what you want, but actions speak louder than words every time.
Tue, 2021-05-11 23:31
#277
Cassandra Dlugozima says she was notified by public health on Saturday, May 1 that she was exposed to COVID on Thursday, April 29. Dlugozima booked the first COVID test available in her community of Greenwood, N.S. for Tuesday, May 4 and separated herself from her husband, two-year-old child, and mother -- who all live together.
Eleven days after being exposed to the virus and six days after getting her first COVID-19 test, Dlugozima says she is still waiting for her results.
"I'm supposed to go for my second follow-up test tomorrow without actually knowing the results of my first test," Dlugozima said in an interview with CTV News. "It gets to the point where positive or negative you don't even care you just want to find out because the waiting and the anticipation, it's a lot."
Dlugozima said every number she has called and every email she has sent has only given her an automated response and no direction on what to do.
"It's a big feeling of helplessness because there really is nothing I can do," she said.
It sounds from the article as if Dlugozima was not presenting with any symptoms. Many people, in the absence of a test for covid, would never have any reason to suspect they are ill. So we have to ask, is testing and isolating otherwise healthy people, with the attendant disruption to school, work family life, etc an effective use of resources, since prior pandemic plans don't even advocate quarantine of exposed people?
Wed, 2021-05-12 01:32
#278
More evidence that masks actually protect human health:
A 2019 study showed that human microplastic consumption ranges from 39,000 to 52,000 particles per day. These estimates increase to 74,000 and 121,000 when inhalation is considered. This amounts to humans ingesting approx. 5 grams of plastic each and every week, 5 grams being the equivalent of a credit card or a US nickel. Earlier in 2019, the European commission’s chief scientific advisers stated:
The evidence [on both environmental and health risks due to microplastics] provides grounds for genuine concern and for precaution to be exercised.”
More recently, on August 17, 2020, researchers analyzed 47 human tissue samples. Traces of microplastics were found in all 47 samples.
We have detected these chemicals of plastics in every single organ that we have investigated.”
senior researcher Rolf Halden, director of the Arizona State University (ASU) Biodesign Center for Environmental Health EngineeringThis begs the question, what will be the result from applying microplastic materials, that is face masks, directly and securely over our air passages?
“Flock” is defined as inhaled microfibers of the plastic. “Flock worker’s lung” is an occupational lung disease caused by exposure to flock in manufacturing processes. People who work in flocking manufacturing processes inhale small pieces of the flock fibers, placing them at risk of interstitial lung disease.
Workers exposed to polypropylene flocking particles have developed flock worker’s lung. The presence of microplastics in human lung tissue was outlined by in a 1998 science paper, following the research of lung tissue belonging to cancer patients who had prolonged exposure to plastic fibers.
In addition to particle pollution causing damage to lung tissue and reducing lung capacity, it worsens other respiratory health issues such as asthma. In 2013, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an institution belonging to the World Health Organization, concluded that particle pollution causes lung cancer.
An informal survey of a small group of health care workers by myself found that about 50% of workers noted that their masks began to fray at the end of their shift, noting fibers that itched their face and nose.”
[source]In occupational flock, “the cutting process results in formation of airborne particles or fibers in the respirable range.” . As facemasks undergo a continuous friction with breathing, talking, and facial movements, it seems likely, if not probable, that microscopic polypropylene microfibers, in some amount, are effectively being ingested into both the body and lungs.
Particles that are not inhaled into the lungs (the vast majority) make their way into our waterways. To be more succinct, every single particle produced, that does not make its way into our bodies, will instead go in to our waterways. The particles are then ingested into the body by humans and non-human life (marine animals and fish), some of which is too, ingested by humans. Of course, in addition, we drink the water, as does non-human life.
…Is this how we protect biodiversity? Is this what we mean by protecting health?
Wed, 2021-05-12 01:41
#279
Meanwhile in the real world 3,331,763 people have died of Covid worldwide.
Wed, 2021-05-12 02:24
#280
Meanwhile in the real world 3,331,763 people have died of Covid worldwide.
The answer is obvious then. We need to force people to wear masks that release microfibers into their lungs and add to the microplastic problem when several covid case charts from around the world show no relationship between introduction or presence of mask mandates and covid trends.
Wed, 2021-05-12 16:29
#281
Meanwhile in the real world 3,331,763 people have died of Covid worldwide.The answer is obvious then. We need to force people to wear masks that release microfibers into their lungs and add to the microplastic problem when several covid case charts from around the world show no relationship between introduction or presence of mask mandates and covid trends.
Are you purposely showing us an excellent example of a straw man argument?
Wed, 2021-05-12 12:57
#282
Meanwhile in the real world 3,331,763 people have died of Covid worldwide.The answer is obvious then. We need to force people to wear masks that release microfibers into their lungs and add to the microplastic problem when several covid case charts from around the world show no relationship between introduction or presence of mask mandates and covid trends.
Are you purposely showing us an old excellent example of a straw man argument?
I like your example of a perfect rhetorical question.
Wed, 2021-05-12 20:16
#283
I like your example of a perfect rhetorical question.
Are rhetorical questions the perfect form of communication?
Wed, 2021-05-12 21:21
#284
More evidence that masks actually protect human health:
A 2019 study showed that human microplastic consumption ranges from 39,000 to 52,000 particles per day. These estimates increase to 74,000 and 121,000 when inhalation is considered. This amounts to humans ingesting approx. 5 grams of plastic each and every week, 5 grams being the equivalent of a credit card or a US nickel. Earlier in 2019, the European commission’s chief scientific advisers stated:
The evidence [on both environmental and health risks due to microplastics] provides grounds for genuine concern and for precaution to be exercised.”
More recently, on August 17, 2020, researchers analyzed 47 human tissue samples. Traces of microplastics were found in all 47 samples.
We have detected these chemicals of plastics in every single organ that we have investigated.”
senior researcher Rolf Halden, director of the Arizona State University (ASU) Biodesign Center for Environmental Health EngineeringThis begs the question, what will be the result from applying microplastic materials, that is face masks, directly and securely over our air passages?
“Flock” is defined as inhaled microfibers of the plastic. “Flock worker’s lung” is an occupational lung disease caused by exposure to flock in manufacturing processes. People who work in flocking manufacturing processes inhale small pieces of the flock fibers, placing them at risk of interstitial lung disease.
Workers exposed to polypropylene flocking particles have developed flock worker’s lung. The presence of microplastics in human lung tissue was outlined by in a 1998 science paper, following the research of lung tissue belonging to cancer patients who had prolonged exposure to plastic fibers.
In addition to particle pollution causing damage to lung tissue and reducing lung capacity, it worsens other respiratory health issues such as asthma. In 2013, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an institution belonging to the World Health Organization, concluded that particle pollution causes lung cancer.
An informal survey of a small group of health care workers by myself found that about 50% of workers noted that their masks began to fray at the end of their shift, noting fibers that itched their face and nose.”
[source]In occupational flock, “the cutting process results in formation of airborne particles or fibers in the respirable range.” . As facemasks undergo a continuous friction with breathing, talking, and facial movements, it seems likely, if not probable, that microscopic polypropylene microfibers, in some amount, are effectively being ingested into both the body and lungs.
Particles that are not inhaled into the lungs (the vast majority) make their way into our waterways. To be more succinct, every single particle produced, that does not make its way into our bodies, will instead go in to our waterways. The particles are then ingested into the body by humans and non-human life (marine animals and fish), some of which is too, ingested by humans. Of course, in addition, we drink the water, as does non-human life.
…Is this how we protect biodiversity? Is this what we mean by protecting health?
either on dr campbell's show or cbc they reported on a study showing a strong correlation of severity of c19 symptoms and body levels of "forever chemicals" - teflon, pcb,etc. plastics are known hormone-mimickers, they mess with a number of biological processes.
my sister is very allergic to polyester. when the pandemic started i wore a construction dust mask for about 8hours total and wanted to claw my face off. made my own after that.
over the years i've eliminated almost all synthetics from my clothing and definitely ditched the micro fleece, 'cause there it is in the ocean, and everywhere else.
it's a bigger struggle (read, impossible) to get plastic out of one's food chain. cast iron or glass for cooking. locally sourced bulk food when possible. good water.
Fri, 2021-05-14 13:30
#285
Nearly one in five pregnant women in the UK were forced to wear a face covering during labour, according to research by a charity, despite official health guidance saying they should not be asked to do so.
Women described feeling unable to breathe, having panic attacks or even being sick during labour because they were made to wear a face covering.
The research was carried out by the charity Pregnant Then Screwed, who surveyed 936 women who gave birth during December. It found that 160 of those who went into labour were made to wear a face covering. This goes against current joint UK guidance, published in July 2020 by the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
The guidance says that women should not be asked to wear a face covering of any kind during natural labour or during caesarean births because of the risk of harm and complications. Rosie, 39, from London, said she felt as if she was dying because she was in so much pain during advanced labour with her third child, born in December. Yet maternity staff instructed to keep on her face mask.
Sat, 2021-05-15 03:08
#286
How has New Zealand's health system held up in zero-covid land?
Sick and injured patients are being left in hospital corridors and ambulances are queuing outside Auckland emergency departments as demand continues to skyrocket.Mothers with high-risk pregnancies have occasionally been transferred out of the Auckland area to give birth, because no beds are available in the region.
Middlemore, Auckland City and North Shore Hospitals sent an alert to ambulances on Monday night warning that they were nearing maximum capacity, the Herald can reveal.
...
Operating well above maximum capacity was a problem that had escalated this year with the backlog of planned care that had been put on hold because of Covid-19, he said.
Ontario's fiscal watchdog says it will take the province approximately three and a half years to clear the surgical backlog from the COVID-19 pandemic.The Financial Accountability Office projects that the backlog of cancelled surgeries will reach 419,200 procedures by the end of September.
The FAO estimates it will cost the province $1.3 billion to clear the backlog, and notes the government has allocated $610 million in its latest budget to address the issue.
There you have it folks. The question is whether or not your health care system has enough capacity to handle the patient load, and that capacity is independent of coronavirus. Lockdowns don't ease the strain on hospitals, they only shift it around.
Sat, 2021-05-15 10:08
#287
There you have it folks. The question is whether or not your health care system has enough capacity to handle the patient load, and that capacity is independent of coronavirus. Lockdowns don't ease the strain on hospitals, they only shift it around.
How many times do you have to be informed that is the goal. The entire point of restrictions in Canada has been to smooth demand on hospitals so they are not overwhelmed in any one moment. That is why we haven't done a lockdown.
The point has never been to stop the virus in most of Canada, only to stop if from overwhelming hospitals. In that we have failed because hospitals have been forced to delay treatments because we didn't lockdown.
Capacity is not independent of Covid. We had capacity problems before Covid. We didn't have room to add having a pandemic. We don't have the capacity to take care of all the patients that would be produced if there were no restrictions. It would/will take years to increase capacity.
Sat, 2021-05-15 20:05
#288
Due to health and safety measures required to keep families, individuals and staff safe in response to COVID-19, Community Living disABILITY Services-funded day services for adults with intellectual disabilities will be suspended for two weeks in Winnipeg. The closure will take effect on Monday, May 17 and extend until May 28. Some exceptions may be made where the safety of individuals cannot be managed in residential care or at home during the day.
What will the mental health implications be for these people, especially if they don't have the cognitive capacity to understand why this is happening to them?