Is this a credible case that BC is handling it worse than Legault, Ford, or Kenney? Probably not, but there have been more serious restrictions attempted in Ontario and Quebec at least. I think the soft NDP supporters in my circles all expect BC to be doing better than those other guys. Newdeathparty is unfair, and not much of a pun to boot...BC has always done relatively well on the metric of deaths per capita, and the vaccination of the elderly and long-term care residents happened in time to keep death counts low even as we are reaching our highest case numbers:
For now, B.C. continues to be right near the bottom of the death chart often cited by @adriandix, as it does every week. Big questions in the weeks ahead. Let's commit to the actions needed to keep it there. pic.twitter.com/uCWHwSq8tr— Justin McElroy (@j_mcelroy) April 4, 2021
But the variants appear to be tearing through younger populations, our hockey team has the worst outbreak in pro sports, and too many people here have decided the pandemic is over. It's scary!
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 16:57 (three years ago) link
https://www.thestar.com/business/2021/04/06/warehouses-factories-construction-sites-responsible-for-far-more-workplace-outbreaks-than-retail-and-restaurants-data-shows.html
I thought this article, from a province (or city I guess?) that actually releases detailed data, was excellent and should be required reading for Canadians:
Since mid-February, Toronto Public Health has been publishing a list of active workplace outbreaks every Thursday. The agency’s data shows that since the pandemic began, food processing plants, offices, warehouses, shipping and distribution centres and construction sites have been responsible for 378 outbreaks as of March 30 — compared to 51 in bars, restaurants and nightclubs, and 53 in retail, grocery stores and malls. (An official outbreak is declared when there are two or more confirmed cases that could be reasonably linked to the workplace within 14 days.)
That’s 68 per cent of all workplace outbreaks, compared to just under 19 per cent if you combine bars, restaurants, nightclubs, retail, grocery and malls.
The province breaks its sector-specific data down by case, not by outbreak, but the effect is the same. Within the same time frame, Ontario reported 3,266 cases linked to food processing and “other” workplaces, which includes offices, warehouses, distribution centres and construction sites. By comparison, it reported 824 cases linked to bars, restaurants and nightclubs, and 1,339 cases linked to retail.
Since TPH began publishing workplace outbreaks, four of the city’s largest have been at food manufacturers or distributors: Belmont Meats (94 cases), Johnvince Foods (83 cases), Dimpflmeier Bakery (53 cases) and Maple Leaf Foods (25 cases). Union representatives told the Star in February that at least two of the employers — Belmont and Maple Leaf — do not offer paid sick leave.
Outbreaks at two separate Toronto police facilities involving 35 cases forced Toronto Police College to suspend in-person training in February. Other major Toronto workplace outbreaks in the past three months have included Alumicor Limited (20 cases), DECIEM skin care (18 cases), Sky Window Technologies (20 cases), Sweet Maple Candies (17 cases) and Ya Ya Foods (12 cases).
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 17:02 (three years ago) link
Thanks, that helps.
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 17:14 (three years ago) link
someone please strangle Doug Ford already i am sick of this bullshit
the news the past week: the ICUs are filling up with people under 50!
Ford gov't today: we've lowered the vaccine eligibility to 50 and up!!!
kill me
― self-clowning oven (Murgatroid), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 18:07 (three years ago) link
Meanwhile Montreal is making sure that leftover doses are going to cops. Not teachers, cops.
― pomenitul, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 18:13 (three years ago) link
oh lol and they haven't even given a firm date for when they're lowering the eligibility so there's that
THIS FUCKING ASSHOLE
― self-clowning oven (Murgatroid), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 18:13 (three years ago) link
60 is still the cutoff point in Quebec...
― pomenitul, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 18:15 (three years ago) link
71 in BC, I think
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 18:49 (three years ago) link
No surprise, Toronto schools have joined Peel in shutting down. Having one online and the other in-person didn't compute--Brampton and Mississauga are basically extensions of Toronto.
I have to wonder if the situation in schools is deteriorating faster than they're saying. ("They" meaning the government, I guess.) Erring on the side of caution hasn't exactly been the rule the past year; action is generally taken only when it has to be taken. Shutting down now, rather than holding on for three extra days, only makes sense in that context.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 19:30 (three years ago) link
Is anyone taking this seriously?
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/conservatives-public-inquiry-covid19-response-1.5976456
If anything, I have more of a problem with our successive provincial governments' cavalier approach to healthcare than I do with the feds.
― pomenitul, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 19:36 (three years ago) link
Just saw Biden give a summary of vaccination progress that makes it clear just how much of a free pass every politician here got for as long as Trump was in charge.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 20:33 (three years ago) link
The most Canadian thing to do would be to focus on the one thing the Americans have done well for the past ten years at the expense of everything else.
― Van Horn Street, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:08 (three years ago) link
I take your point, but at this juncture, won't speeded-up vaccinations make the everything else secondary? I know they're not the whole solution; you have to keep doing everything else. But without vaccinations, there seems to be early evidence that the everything else can't keep up with the variants.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:12 (three years ago) link
Anyway, my main point was that everything is relative, and having Trump as your point of comparison did give Ford and the rest something of a free pass with the press (I'm sure I got lured into that too)--although the damage he did spilled over to us in many other ways.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:18 (three years ago) link
the news the past week: the ICUs are filling up with people under 50!Ford gov't today: we've lowered the vaccine eligibility to 50 and up!!!
seriously. I hate him/them so very much. the fact that his approval ratings are good (if declining, verrrry slowwwly) is enraging. this is from less than a month ago:
A new Angus Reid Institute poll this week pegged Ford’s approval rating at 50 per cent. That’s down from a high of 69-per-cent approval in the early summer, but still miles ahead of the dismal 31 per cent Ford had at the start of the pandemic. A Mainstreet Research poll in late February reported that 43 per cent of Ontarians were likely to vote for Ford if an election were held, and the PCs dominated in every age group.
― intern at pepe le pew research (Simon H.), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:24 (three years ago) link
Again, there is a direct connection there, I believe, to who he's being compared to--that decline may accelerate quickly.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:25 (three years ago) link
I sure fuckin hope so, and I hope it happens without too much more death. The provincial opposition has been invisible, as well.
― intern at pepe le pew research (Simon H.), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:29 (three years ago) link
Biden said today that every American over the age of 18 will be vaccine-eligible by April 19.
1) Does that mean they'll actually get it? The vast majority, probably not.
2) Is a target like that even possible for us? With the vaccines we're getting delivered, probably not--which may be our fault, I don't know anymore.
But it will be hard to maintain that approval rating when you put the over/under-50 announcement next to that, unless the blame gets mostly deflected onto Trudeau.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:33 (three years ago) link
All he had to do last spring was look gravely concerned at his press conferences (he did, and I do believe that was genuine), step aside and let doctors speak when it was a medical question, and shut down everything for the first month (or was it two months? I can't even remember anymore). Trump's daily horror show took care of everything else. We're a long way from all that.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 6 April 2021 21:37 (three years ago) link
https://thetyee.ca/News/2021/04/02/Canada-One-Big-Pandemic-Response-Experiment-Zero-COVID/
― Wayne Grotski (symsymsym), Tuesday, 6 April 2021 23:20 (three years ago) link
eh it's kind of relevant that the provinces that did zero covid are the maritimes, not really a perfectly controlled experiment
― flopson, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 05:33 (three years ago) link
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-stay-at-home-order-covid-19-1.5977646
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 11:35 (three years ago) link
Richest postal codes in Toronto have highest vaccination rates, lowest deaths.Poorest postal codes, low vaccination rates, high number of deaths. Thread 👇👇👇 https://t.co/5Jhv06Ap3G— Judy Trinh (@judyatrinh) April 7, 2021
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 12:58 (three years ago) link
I can understand a slight discrepancy based on average age, but those numbers are fucking wild.
― intern at pepe le pew research (Simon H.), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:07 (three years ago) link
Anyone care to explain why that is?
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:14 (three years ago) link
xps Not an experiment at all, that's a dumb way that they put it
― maf you one two (maffew12), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:15 (three years ago) link
Basing the rollout so strictly on age was probably a mistake. (Tbf, they couldn't have predicted the new variants when they made the original plans.) Ottawa did make a point of prioritizing high-risk neighbourhoods at each stage, although age etc is still the primary criterion - not sure what the numbers come out to.
xp without researching, I'm guessing these are factors: average age; accessibility of clinics (as mentioned above); populations getting left out bc of language skills or citizenship/residency status
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:18 (three years ago) link
Sigh @ people replying on that thread in defence of the situation by emphasizing that there are more old people in the richer and safer neighbourhood, rather than questioning whether age was the best criterion to use.
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:27 (three years ago) link
Makes sense. I was wondering whether we could add higher rates of vaccine hesitancy to that list, but the data I found doesn't really refer to income:
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2021001/article/00011-eng.htm
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:28 (three years ago) link
questioning whether age was the best criterion to use
The assumption that vulnerable groups are 100% rational and will sign up for a shot as soon as a slot is available turned out to be off the mark in Quebec and I'm sure it's the same in Ontario.
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 13:29 (three years ago) link
Some of the communities in those neighbourhoods aren’t tuned into social media much at all, or regular media for that matter. Will need a localized approach.
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 15:29 (three years ago) link
As suggested by Warner upthread (and even Arlene Dickinson!), they should be bringing the vaccines into the factories and workplaces, into these neighbourhoods. It's fucking madness that people in our neighbourhood (which includes lots of immigrants and lower-income people, although there are far rougher) have to get themselves out to Canterbury.
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 15:41 (three years ago) link
Naheed Nenshi moves on: https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-mayor-naheed-nenshi-won-t-seek-re-election-in-october-vote-1.5376844
― Sequel to Sadness (Sund4r), Wednesday, 7 April 2021 15:50 (three years ago) link
As much as I'm sickened by this new stay-at-home order, I do get it--3,200 cases today--and it was made clear to me yesterday, when I went into Stratford and found that thrift stores were open, how meaningless the red-zone move last week really was.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:02 (three years ago) link
I have a UK visa appointment in Ottawa on Monday for dumb and complicated reasons I won't bore you with and if that falls through because of the stay-at-home order it'll set off an extremely unpleasant chain reaction. Fuuuuck.
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:08 (three years ago) link
Hopefully that would be deemed essential...I mean, staying or leaving seems kind of essential to me.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:15 (three years ago) link
The rumour is that non-essential goods in the Ontario big box stores will actually be roped off this time, which I agree with if they are going to close the little stores.
It’s definitely time to prioritize vax for the teachers, despite the “schools are safe” rationale from Ford and Lecce. That same “99% have no cases” doesn’t hold when it comes to retail and everything else, and the thing is, in that small percentage where you do have cases, the teachers are at extreme risk because working with kids is always a higher than average germ exposure job.
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:22 (three years ago) link
― pomenitul, Wednesday, April 7, 2021 12:08 PM (thirteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink
Travel for immigration/visa appointments are supposed to be kosher iirc
― Van Horn Street, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:24 (three years ago) link
That teachers weren’t the first vaccinated after the health professionals is so insulting.
― Van Horn Street, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:26 (three years ago) link
Ok cool. It was definitely closed last spring though, at the height of the first wave. And why the hell don’t they have one in Montreal? Ugh.xp
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:49 (three years ago) link
One = UK visa application centre, not covid wave lol (we already have that, alas).
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 16:59 (three years ago) link
They remember the FLQ.
― Van Horn Street, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 17:55 (three years ago) link
And why the hell don’t they have one in Montreal Westmount?
― rob, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 18:00 (three years ago) link
Ok, stay at home order starting at midnight. If they follow through, some of this stuff is good - mobile vaccine clinics for 18+ in hot spots, special education and hot spot teachers to get priority, followed by teachers in general.
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 18:55 (three years ago) link
I think I'm eligible because I teach in Peel. I just hope it extends to supply teachers (it should; theoretically we move around, even though I think most are sticking to one school this year).
― clemenza, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 18:57 (three years ago) link
I might be eligible anyway, having been born in '61 (someone told me they go by year, not exact birthday).
― clemenza, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 18:58 (three years ago) link
Not sure about supply teachers, but hopefully - believe they did just say all Toronto and Peel teachers.
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 18:59 (three years ago) link
You should be able to book an astra Zeneca one at a pharmacy if any near you offering it? That’s 55+ right now
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 19:00 (three years ago) link
Yep, you should definitely go for it, clem.
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 19:04 (three years ago) link
Ford is being dumb again with this 99% of kids aren’t reporting a case of covid thing - I guess spending a full day with a group of 100 children is fine when just one is sick?
― Kim, Wednesday, 7 April 2021 19:19 (three years ago) link