outbreak! (ebola, sars, coronavirus, etc)

it's ironic that all those medicine makers are still just commercial enterprises who will be sourcing their basic ingredients from the cheapest suppliers, i.e. China.

( https://theconversation.com/amp/the-world-needs-pharmaceuticals-from-china-and-india-to-beat-coronavirus-138388 )

his name is even BILL ffs

true billheads know him as william henry gates III

that's right. there's three of him, at least

I know I shouldn’t be surprised at all, and on some level I’m probably not, but livid that this entire administration will be getting the vaccine before the vast majority of healthcare workers. These assholes directly caused the deaths of thousands and half of them still think it’s a hoax, but they push their fat asses to the front of the line for a vaccine they don’t actually believe in. I’m so angry.

I know I shouldn’t be surprised at all, and on some level I’m probably not, but livid that this entire administration politicians in general will be getting the vaccine before the vast majority of healthcare workers. These assholes directly caused the deaths of thousands and half of them still think it’s a hoax, but they push their fat asses to the front of the line for a vaccine they don’t actually believe in. I’m so angry.

ftfy

Thanks! Fair point too, but esp galling that the fucking COVID deniers will be among the first.

Yeah, realized that might have seemed a little snarky, didn't mean it to be! I am also infuriated!

no matter how angry we are, let's not resort to bodyshaming. let's be better than that. just say they push their asses of equally beautiful shape and size to the front of the line.

Fair play, sorry for that. It’s been a hard day and hearing about the White House getting the vaccines set me off. My uncle unexpectedly passed away last night, not due to
COVID, and I’m definitely on a short fuse tonight.

Especially because the shit job this administration has done for months meant my aunt couldn’t even be with him.

Just followed a Twitter thread because it dealt with death rates in NJ, where I live. They're pretty fucking staggering, but that's because we're the most densely populated state - there's basically nowhere to hide. Anyway, in the process I learned that Naomi Wolf, who people apparently continue to take seriously even after her publisher canceled her last book because it was so error-damaged, is one of these "anti-lockdown" assholes. I haven't read enough of her Twitter feed to determine whether she's anti-vax as well, though she's definitely enough of a brainwormed Boomer to have gone full batshit.

condolences jvc

naomi wolf, noted expert about Ireland

Na O'Mi

Perhaps the reason sensitive rtPCR tests can find viral shedding months after recovery:

Zhang et al 2020. SARS-CoV-2 RNA reverse-transcribed and integrated into the human genome

Unlike HIV-1, the virus itself isn't driving this. Viral RNA gets translated by reverse transcriptase from LINE-1 elements, a endogenous genomic parasite that comprise 17% of the human genome (8-9 times more than the genes that code for humans). And one of my counterexamples against intelligent design.

lots of doubt being cast on that study

Wow whod’ve thunk Sanpaku would post a link to one (1) study about something and draw extravagant conclusions from it

sanpaku's "extravagant conclusion":

Perhaps the reason sensitive rtPCR tests can find viral shedding months after recovery:

TS;dr

ouch

Excellent thread here, placing in the context against other vaccines.

Many people are unaware that the COVID-19 vaccine has significantly more side effects than the flu vaccine. I hope to see more honest discussions regarding this.

Props to @Cat_Ho for her realistic, data-centric reporting of this issue. It's much needed.https://t.co/3dSkXQHdvn pic.twitter.com/gKD13elIyI

— Youyang Gu (@youyanggu) December 14, 2020

will take those over dying from COVID

I didn't find them to be too debilitating, but I was also secretly happy that I got to miss work that day

I already have most of those symptoms just from being 49 years old and being alive rn

Fatigue, pain, and vomiting? I call that "Tuesday." Come at me bro

honestly those stats are what i thought the flut shot stats were

I definitely had like a 101 - 102 fever, maybe some aches. but I didn't have Pfizer's, I had Moderna.

Neanderthal apologies if this has been asked already, but do/did you ever find out if you got a vaccine or placebo?

And obv if you don't want to say nbd

not for sure, no - according to my paperwork, the only way they could tell me is if I'm removed from the study for health reasons or something.

I am guessing I did get the vaccine only because the immune reaction was rougher than any other vaccination I've ever received - I don't react to flu shots, or tetanus or any of them I've ever gotten. It's possible I got the placebo, but I doubt I've have had that reaction given my history.

really should take an antibody test to find out, though that doesn't technically prove it either! :)

that doesn't technically prove it either! :)

yeah. in aggregate the testing is a valuable tool for health officials, but in regard to any one outcome of any one test, it's all "seen through a glass darkly".

Our local medical centre has got the (Pfizer) vaccine and has booked in 1000 over-80s for their two doses of vaccine. It sounds like an amazing takeup, there will be lots more to do before they can move on to the next group but a big first step.

those over 80s are going to be incorrigible when they've had their jabs.

where do you live, kinder?

I'm in the uk, not in London

NY Times front page headline

"Moderna Vaccine Prevents Severe Covid-19, Data Show"

Actual correct discussion of this (i.e. the data do not show that)

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/12/fda-releases-data-on-modernas-covid-vaccine-it-looks-good/
"The trial also had a pre-defined "severe" category of COVID-19. By November 7, there were 19 cases in the placebo group and none in those who received the vaccine. As of November 21, it had gone to 30 cases among the placebo group, but the mRNA-1273 group remained without any cases. It's unclear whether this was because the vaccine also limits the severity of infection or because there were so few cases in the vaccinated group that the odds of having a severe case were low."

NYT journalist/headline writer caught in a not-understanding-statistics shocker.

I remember reading a few months ago that a vaccine may not be 100% effective but if you got it and still contracted Covid anyway the odds of it being a severe case would be far lower than if you hadn't gotten the vaccine. is that how things work?

There’s no way of knowing, is caek’s point

Yet, anyway.

one could reasonably say there are early indications this may be the case, but the evidence is insufficient to draw such a conclusion. even if you say this, most of your audience will draw its own premature conclusions anyway. people prefer drawing conclusions to suspending judgment.

yup, totally plausible but there's very little evidence it's true (or not) and it's certainly not the headline (the headline is the "VACCINE WORKS")

do vaccines typically work that way? if I get the flu shot but still get the flu, is it generally a milder case than I'd otherwise get?

any aspect of this comment could be bullshit, but here's my understanding:

it's pretty common for vaccines in general to reduce severity, but it's not the rule, and vaccines are a pretty big class of drugs, andd these are the first mrna vaccines and the first coronvirus vaccines and we're going to give them to literally billions of people, so it seems worth checking if claims are true before putting them on the front page.

Insane story of the day.

Yesterday:

https://www.wdsu.com/amp/article/medical-emergency-prompts-flight-heading-to-los-angeles-to-land-in-new-orleans/34970433

On twitter, several passengers on this flight from Orlando to LAX are saying the person who died was part of a large group who had traveled to Disneyworld (from LA wtf???) and the person who died midflight had just had a positive COVID test and was having trouble breathing prior to boarding. Neither the airline nor the airport had taken any temperatures prior to boarding.

(okay, so my wife just told me that Disneyland is closed whereas Disneyworld is not, not that that ratches down the insanity of this story much).

even ignoring the temp, how would someone conceal that they were visibly struggling that much?

i had to fly during the pandemic twice. JetBlue, they had reduced capacity, no middle seats, and the plane was practically deserted, and masks were mandatory and they were walking by seats to make sure people had them on and wouldn't push back if they didn't.

the other airline(s) I flew can fuck off and die, they didn't give a shit.

this was when cases were low....no way in hell am i flying one now

temperature-taking is security theater

I saw the twitter posts from passengers on the plane and thought it had to be bullshit. wow. no words

Yea it's amazing by now that people think taking temps for a disease where half the ppl have no symptoms proves anything.