Corona Virus, How Has It Affected Your Area So Far?

I don't disagree. I don't think most Americans need to go get a mask either, but making up a story about how the media is to blame for people not wearing masks doesn't work. When very early on, we were told by the government, not the media, we don't need masks.

Seeing people put some of their personal clout into trying to get more equipment for medical personnel definitely makes me very happy- Stephon Marbury, NBA player who actually had a HUGE career in the Chinese Basketball Association, is working with some former partners (team owners and sponsors) in China to get large quantities of masks sent to medical centers in New York at a huge discount...only to have the Health Department say they didn't need them.

Masks from China to NYC hit a snag

But masks in the public are a waste of such resources. If the public is using disposable masks properly, the supply would be even more taxed than it already it and crash even sooner. I have a great deal of respect for those hand-making masks for small communities or personal use- but unless people are properly sterilizing them constantly, they're going to just soak up and hold everything. That's my big fear with the social media trend of the home-made masks.

I do agree that for the vast majority of us, public wearing of masks is just to make us feel like we're doing SOMETHING. Although I'd imagine that proper usage of them, either through sterilization or disposable, has to have some benefit for users of public transportation.

IMO The government made a huge mistake by telling people that they don't need masks.

The entire reason why Asian countries did a much better job than NA against this viruses is because their government actually encourage people wear masks, not the other way around.



Using a mask don't necessarily reduce supply for health workers. Not all masks are qualified for hospital use, and they generally get their supplies from reliable source. But even a home made mask can reduce community transmission between people.

There are tons of pro-mask arguments on the internet and personally I'm convinced that "everyone wear a mask" is a better strategy against this virus. It sucks that our government just refuse to admit that they made a huge mistake.

https://medium.com/@Cancerwarrior/covid-19-why-we-should-all-wear-masks-there-is-new-scientific-rationale-280e08ceee71

https://youtu.be/HhNo_IOPOtU

The reason you guys are not understanding me is that you are being partisan and you assume I am too. Pence saying that people should not wear masks is incredibly idiotic. Maybe even criminal. The government should have owned up to the fact that they dropped the ball and didn't stockpile enough masks. they should have asked people to not buy masks, but then encouraged people to make their own. This disease spreads asymptomatically. So it's great to say sick people should wear masks, but what about the people who can't tell they're sick?

There's a thing called viral load. A cloth mask is not as good as an n95. But if everyone is wearing a cloth mask and you are exposed, you will get way less virus, which can mean the difference between a mild case and dying.

The media who are always ready to jump down the throats of the Republican government, why didn't they challenge this? They challenge everything Trump/Pence say, but then as soon as those guys say something dangerously wrong, it's crickets from the media.

Those jerks should have said, "wait a minute, everyone has masks in Hong Kong and South Korea and it seems to be working there." Then they could have proceeded to teach people the proper way to put on and remove masks. They could have encouraged people to make masks for themselves and others. But no. They told everyone that toilet paper was disappearing, that chloroquine was in fish bleach, that restaurants were failing because everyone is racist, and that anyone who went out to buy a few extra canned goods in late January was panicking. And they wrote hit pieces on people who were actually telling anyone who would listen, to wear cloth masks and buy a few extra goods early.

Maybe there is a language barrier here. Because at first, you blamed the media for the masks usage. I pointed out it was Pence, not the media, that discouraged the use of masks, and you got upset about it.

Now, you are calling out Pence for his comments, which I already did. Now you are asking why the media didn't call Pence out? THEY DID. They are constantly calling Trump and Pence out for their misinformation campaign. Trump is responsible for most of it, but we weren't happy that Pence downplayed the need for masks. Our media has ran tons of stories about protective wear, how important it is not to touch your face while in public, mask shortages, mask production, etc. But the fact remains, Pence, the Surgeon General, even the CDC has discouraged the public from buying masks.

Task Force goes all out in telling us not to buy masks

This is the original press conference where Pence and the SG downplayed the need for masks. Way back on March 4th. How times have changed eh?

I laugh at all the idiots wearing 5 micron particulate masks at the grocery store.

The only thing that a mask will do (imo) is prevent your spit from landing on surfaces.

Wellll the coronavirus spreads via cough droplets..so..?

World Health Organization doubles down on mask usage

This is breaking news. The WHO is also stressing to people to not wear a mask if you aren't sick. So, this isn't a media narrative. Its coming from governments and organizations. Their universal message is not to wear a mask. Agree, disagree, thats not the point. This is not a media driven message.

My ex-wife's woulda been a hoodie on me.

My ex-wife's woulda been a hoodie on me.

I’ve always wondered what the cup size was of my face. Only one way to find out!

Declare partial unemployment due to the paycut?

Go on strike?

Or are your hours cut as well? If so no prob. If not its time for social shaming BIG TIME.

Strike seems to be gaining momentum.

Amazon is starting strikes today. Instacart is striking today. GE workers walked out.

The one and only time in your lives to break the cycle of wealth over health and slave labor for slave pay. The system is broken propped up on the backs of literal slavery. (*it is not "broken", it's designed that way and working as intended)

Pay them fairly, Amazon!

things could get interesting in the next few days. Several major metro areas in the United States have organized "rent strikes" since there has been no government freezing of rent/mortgages. Obviously the chain is too involved to realistically be able to do such things, but people are mad, and they know police forces are not allowed to even enforce evictions right now due to limiting social contact for nonviolent offenses.

Let the riots happen. Bring out the guillotines.

Yup, "experts" from NA governments, countries with 7k to 163k cases. I don't buy it at all. Would you learn math from a math tutor that fails high school math?

Experts from Hong Kong(600 cases), South Korea(9k cases and best at flattening the curve after community transmission start), Taiwan(300 cases), Czech Republic (3000 cases) all promote face masks and encourage them. I prefer to believe "experts" from more successful countries, lol.

I know a lot of states have outright suspended rent/mortgage payments, and no evictions can even take place until further notice. Surprised all of the states haven't followed suit. Then again, there are still a lot of states doing a pretty terrible job of handling this.

the problem is that a suspension of rent/mortgage payments won't do anything for the vast majority of those currently at risk. They were paycheck-to-paycheck before this, and postponing a payment until later when they have no assurance to return to a job, and even if they do, they're not going to be able to make up that missed payment (or multiple) while still paying that month's rent/bills.

Only solution I really see is a temporary freeze- if someone had 84 months left on a mortgage, freeze for 2 months and when this ends it just resumes where it was. Leases get that same treatment- the landlord can still be assured of the same number of monthly payments that were agreed upon, and a mortgage freeze would assist with their costs. Problem becomes all the ancillary costs- groundskeeping, maintenance, security...those people are paid for by that rent in larger complexes. Its not like a tenant's rent goes 100% into just the cost of the building.

But again- I know very little but I do know enough that the layering of our financial system is too deep to where its that simple...a tenant doesn't pay rent, the landlord defaults of their mortgage, the bank then can't pay out to the next step, and so on. Each step magnified by the numbers involved. If anyone out there has more info on this aspect I'd love to hear about it.