outbreak! (ebola, sars, coronavirus, etc)

Republicans will all just kill themselves as long as everyone just stays in their lane:

Here's something new: Americans who seem politically polarized by basically everything are taking dramatically different views of the new coronavirus. Democrats are twice as likely to say it's a serious threat, and more of them are washing their hands. https://t.co/OMLhFXCMJI

— Brad Heath (@bradheath) March 6, 2020

republicans are more likely to live in rural areas, too, places where the busiest place in town might be a gas station, so they're probably at lower immediate risk, on average.

however, the question also highlights the different ways that conservatives often view the world (imo). coronavirus is not an imminent threat to the country because it's not an imminent threat to THEM. “I haven’t changed a single thing,” Cindi Hogue, who lives outside Little Rock, Arkansas, told Reuters. “It’s not a reality to me yet. It hasn’t become a threat enough yet in my world.” this pattern plays out over and over, whether it's a conservative asshole being anti gay marriage until suddenly their daughter is a lesbian and they see the light, or voting against disaster aid for other US jurisdictions but then suddenly understanding the need for collective assistance as soon as a natural disaster hits their home district.

That... checks out. I bet there are a bunch of black Ford F-150s with chrome packages and number stickers saying COVID IS 4 BETAS

there's also the whole obvious globalism angle. international! pandemic! global coordination! NO NO NO!!!

“I haven’t changed a single thing,” Cindi Hogue, who lives outside Little Rock, Arkansas, told Reuters. “It’s not a reality to me yet. It hasn’t become a threat enough yet in my world.”

I'm sure you're right, broadly speaking, but this particular quote doesn't actually sound that bad to me. I've certainly encountered a lot of liberal people who consider themselves educated and informed but are ignoring this, and some of them even live in my beleaguered city. This woman is basically just saying it hasn't reached her yet, and she may well be right.

that's very true. i guess the context of the article it was in (about republicans not seeing it as an imminent threat) made me read her quote in a more universal way, rather than applying to just her own neck of the woods

CNN:
4:25 p.m: Minnesota reports first coronavirus case
5:20 p.m: First coronavirus case in Oklahoma
6:35 p.m: Connecticut reveals first coronavirus case
7:18 p.m: First coronavirus case in Kentucky reported
8:05 p.m: Nebraska reports first coronavirus case
8:46 p.m: First confirmed case of coronavirus in Hawaii

I think we started testing.

I'm literally going to a show tonight but...

To reduce the spread of #coronavirus SF health officials advise cancelling non-essential community events for next 2 weeks. Text COVID19SF to 888-777 for official updates about the virus and go to https://t.co/eYvNcvLHLy to learn more. pic.twitter.com/i5nraNFqUR

— San Francisco DEM (@SF_emergency) March 7, 2020

feels like half the country has underlying medical condition that could make them higher risk - obesity, automimmune issues, heart/blood pressure

― Greta Van Show Feets BB (milo z), Friday, March 6, 2020 9:09 PM bookmarkflaglink

Hai!

To date, @UWVirology has performed approximately 400 tests for #COVIDー19. We are seeing a consistent positivity rate of 5-7% among specimens submitted to the lab. We are able to meet all current testing demands with capacity for over 1,000 tests per day.

— UW Virology (@UWVirology) March 6, 2020

Right there with ya, Ned. Fennesz is worth the risk. Happy to self quarantine starting tomorrow.

I took out the DVD I bought a few years ago and rewatched Contagion last night. I didn't seem to rate it in the last-x thread, but I called it "so-so" in a year-end wrap-up. Not just because of the current situation, but that's really selling it short.

Maybe all viruses follow a similar path and it was easy getting the details right. It's spooky how precisely it matches the news right now.

Soderburgh had very legit scientific advisors on Contagion. Having read about this sort of thing from Richard Preston and Laurie Garrett books for 25 years, the biggest surprise to me from the news is how the Trump White House politicized the response by downplaying risks, delaying testing, focusing on perception rather than data. I'm also more than a little surprised that first responders who received all this bioterrorism kit after 9/11 have shortages of very basic protective equipment.

. . . why would these things surprise you?

Surprise compared to my expectations prior to this administration. CDC career scientists are very good, its SARS, H1N1, Ebola, and Zika responses prompt, they knew this was a big fucking deal by around Jan 15, so I would have expected a more competent response, even if the political appointees at NIH and HHS weren't.

i have a trip to LA for some dj gigs planned for march 20-28 but everything i read be like, ARE YOU INSANE, DON'T TRAVEL AHHH. but i didn't buy travel insurance when i booked this so i guess i'm going. am anxious now.

and yes it fucking sucks that the federal response in the US has been a lot of disinformation and downplaying what is a serious danger. this country is so backwards.

zat u sanpaku?

https://www.salon.com/2020/03/06/cnbcs-rick-santelli-suggests-infecting-everybody-with-coronavirus-to-protect-the-stock-markets_partner/

I'm definitely frustrated at the apparent lack of planning and/or organization, because as sanpaku noted, you can only blame so many political appointees, and the CDC and cohort are usually more than competent. The only silver lining is that no matter who is to blame, the administration will bear the brunt of the criticism, with the caveat that they seem to be quite aware of that, which has further incentivized them to lie and obscure for the sake of self-preservation.

That said, I'm as anxious as anyone, but trying hard to tune out at least some of the noise and follow the news and facts as they are reported. My understanding is that air travel is no worse than any other form of public transportation, in terms of exposure, and that as long as you wash hands and avoid people with symptoms (the usual precautions) you should be as OK as you are anywhere. To that end, we're still planning to go to Maui in a couple of weeks. There's no (reported) outbreak on the island, there's no (reported) outbreak here, not only would cancelling our trip cost us a lot of money, but doing so and *not* locking ourselves in at home and avoiding all other people would mean we're still just as at risk for random exposure or transmission here as being or going anywhere else. So we might as well go. If anything, we're going to spend just as much time alone together as a family there as we would here, and for all I know the warm weather and tropical forest/beach might actually limit exposure. Obviously we would change our plans if there was a sudden (reported) outbreak here or there, or of course if travel were restricted.

i have a trip to LA for some dj gigs planned for march 20-28 but everything i read be like, ARE YOU INSANE, DON'T TRAVEL AHHH. but i didn't buy travel insurance when i booked this so i guess i'm going. am anxious now.

and yes it fucking sucks that the federal response in the US has been a lot of disinformation and downplaying what is a serious danger. this country is so backwards.

― davey, Saturday, March 7, 2020 1:52 AM

davey, dunno when you purchased ticket but American, for example, is waving fees on certan dates, but I'm sure if you got on the phone you might talk'em out of it too.

http://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2020/American-Airlines-Update-on-China-Flights-OPS-DIS/default.aspx

Huh. We're flying United, so I was curious, and what they posted is really confusing. "We're waiving change fees for any bookings — domestic and international — made between March 3 and March 31, 2020." Does that mean any *travel* booked for between those dates (which makes sense) or tickets *purchased* between those dates (which doesn't)?

Appears to be the latter, which is stupid. On the former front it only applies to travel to epicenters or restricted destinations. They should really be waving rebooking fees on *all* flights.

purchased

They want to incentivise people to book travel now without worrying too much whether, if this drags on, their plans might be disrupted. BA has the same policy.

Around 70 people were left trapped after a hotel used to quarantine people who have had recent contact with coronavirus patients collapsed in Quanzhou, eastern China, officials said.

The Xinjia Hotel collapsed around 7.30pm local time (11.30am GMT) and around 23 people had been rescued by 9pm, according to a city government statement reported by AFP, with rescue efforts ongoing.

WTF? What an unbelievably horrifying scenario.

xpost So people who purchase *now*, fully aware of all this stuff going on, get reassurance that they can change their flights without penalty. But people who purchased months ago, with no idea any of this would be going on, get screwed? If United is acknowledging that people purchasing now might want to change flights out of precaution, then why wouldn't that same safety concern apply to everyone else? That's like saying people booking a room in a burning hotel can get a refund, but those already staying there get penalized for leaving.

They’re doing it to drum up business not out of safety concerns

Yes. It is not a huge mystery why they might treat people whose money they have differently from people whose money they want tbh.

Well, out of safety concerns, but yeah, $$$.

What if the money's infected

Then the joke's on them, because they have our money. The fools.

This #panickbuying just went to a whole new level. I just don’t get it. #Coronavirus pic.twitter.com/lNiE3RdZL0

— Auntie Pegg (@AuntiePegg) March 7, 2020

France is a few days from declaring itself to be in stage 3 epidemic levels. It's not really clear what difference that will make locally, but I imagine it will add us to lists of places to which travel is not allowed.

xp jfc how much are these arseholes planning on shitting

Stores should be placing limits on high demand items.

The government here has put price limits on hand sanitizer (3 euros per 100mls) and is allowing pharmacies (which are everywhere) to make their own for selling in addition.

Yet more proof that Macron is a dictator.

with the strikes in public hospitals right now, the epidemic is going to make things delicate.

don't most average people go through, at max, one roll of toilet paper per person a week?

I’m used to doing most of my pooping at the office so we def will need more around here

josh, are you staying in an apt or hotel? I think there is only one person infected in o'ahu and they were on that cruise ship.

men use 4 a day iirc

depends how often they are planning to masturbate

nothing comes out of my butt when i masturbate.

omg

xpost new board des......wait, nah

i bet everyone in the usa wishes they had japanese toilet seats now.

been wishing for that for a while tbh

also I have been led to believe americans throw it over each others front gardens for some reason

um, it's called "Greeting the Moon"

I think there are 6 cases now in chile, all from people who traveled to e asia, mostly italy. It's hot as shit here right now and very dry so I wonder how that will affect transmission. everyone is still out protesting.