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Trump Is Talking About 'Re-Opening the Country' by Easter. This Hurricane Hasn't Even Hit Yet.
Of course, the president did admit he picked Easter because he likes the sound of it.
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a31925949/trump-easter-coronavirus-reopen-country/?source=nl&utm_source=nl_esq&utm_medium=email&date=032520&utm_campaign=nl19678273
By Jack Holmes
Mar 25, 2020
The disaster we're all talking about has not actually hit yet. The hurricane is only just now making landfall, and some folks are talking about what color we should paint the schoolhouse when it's rebuilt.
We're at the "Levees Will Hold" stage, not the Superdome stage. New York City is a beachhead—and now the epicenter—for the coronavirus pandemic on these shores, but there's reason to believe the crisis has only just begun in the nation's largest city.
The situation in the city's hospitals is already dire, but it probably won't peak there for two-to-three weeks. The timeline is longer in most other parts of the nation. We are on pace to have the worst coronavirus outbreak anywhere in the world and it's scarcely begun.
And yet the president is pushing to "re-open the country" in the next couple of weeks. In fact, he debuted his new line Tuesday that things should get back to normal by Easter. That's two and a half weeks away, and we quickly learned that he pulled this out of his ass.
No public-health expert has endorsed this plan. No data set indicates it reflects the trajectory of reality. It is merely a projection of the Great American Bullshit Machine powering his every word and action. He wants it to be true, and he's used to making things real through sheer force of will and repetition. But it is not real, which he basically admitted to a Fox News host. He just likes the sound of it.
Trump on why he picked Easter as the day he wants to end strict social distancing and reopen American businesses:
"Easter is a very special day for me ... Easter Sunday, and you'll have packed churches all over our country."
OK, let's just put aside for a moment the notion that Donald Trump is a big fan of Easter, or the larger cosmic joke that he is some sort of devout follower of Jesus Christ. The president is calling for churches to be "packed" in two and a half weeks. This is insane. It's a public health disaster. Elsewhere, he suggested he'd picked Easter because it's "a beautiful time."
REPORTER: You said you would like to see churches packed on Easter. Do you public health experts think that's a realistic timeline?
TRUMP: "I think we're looking at a timeline. We're discussing it."
R: Who suggested Easter?
TRUMP: "I just thought it was a beautiful time." pic.twitter.com/Qbu6ZNhNvr
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 24, 2020
By this time next week, this country will be plunged into full-on crisis. People will be dying in large numbers. The hospital system will be under severe, probably dangerous, strain. By that time, this week's idle talk that some will need to die for The Economy—which is, incredibly, the new consensus talking point for the American right—will seem barbaric.
In a just world, the people saying it would be pariahs whom no one grants the time of day ever again. The president's simultaneous claim that somehow the virus will no longer be a major problem and everyone can go to church—which would seem to contradict his allies' position that old people will be dying for the Dow Jones Industrial Average—will seem completely delusional.
But none of this is guaranteed. The president and his allies seem to have successfully swept under the rug the simple reality that he downplayed and spread misinformation about the threat of COVID-19 for weeks on end instead of building out the country's response capacity in the form of tests, masks, ventilators, and hospital beds.
60 percent of Americans approve of his handling of the crisis, despite the fact that no public health experts do. He seems to be setting up fights with various state governors, perhaps in the hope he can blame them when things go bad, even though only the federal government has the power to get the number of ventilators and other equipment hospitals need. The buck stops that-a-way. He takes no responsibility "at all."
The question is whether his complete bungling of this will ever catch up to him, or whether he can avoid accountability as he has with everything else. This is the only major external crisis, apart from Hurricane Maria, that he's really had to deal with, and we are about to see the results.
They are unlikely to be pretty, and it will be a direct consequence of his weeks-long refusal to ramp up testing because he thought it would look bad politically, and his STILL ONGOING refusal to use the Defense Production Act to task American industry with producing needed medical supplies like ventilators and masks.
And yet the Democrats have made themselves invisible enough, and Trump's grip on his cult may be secure enough, that he might just survive. Republican voters essentially only trust information from the president now, which is the danger of his Easter happy talk.
He does not have the unilateral ability to "re-open the country," but his posture may cause 40 percent of the country to disregard public-health measures imposed by more responsible social leaders. Until the hurricane really hits, and all the talk goes flying out the window.
Between this shit, *'The Plot Against America' series on HBO and 'The Man in the High Castle' on Amazon, life and art are blurred.
*Lindberg runs against and beats FDR in '40.
What is clear is that the strains of anti-Semitism, virulent intergenerational ignorance, stupidity and free range bigotry are....…….tenacious.
I see what you did there, many times.
12 noon: Break into prayer groups and pray that no one in attendance today is infected with coronavirus.
Please, open the HS swimming pool and signage it 'gene pool, shallow end only'.
Noooo! Jackson Browne has tested positive (and has a message)
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213170170
Rolling Stone
@RollingStone
·
7h
Jackson Browne has tested positive for the coronavirus and has a message for anyone still not taking the virus seriously
Noooo! Jackson Browne has tested positive (and has a message)
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213170170
Rolling Stone
@RollingStone
·
7h
Jackson Browne has tested positive for the coronavirus and has a message for anyone still not taking the virus seriously
New Poll Shows Biden Trouncing Trump In 300 Swing Counties Across America
Tue, Mar 24th, 2020 by Sean Colarossi
https://www.politicususa.com/2020/03/24/new-poll-shows-biden-trouncing-trump-in-300-swing-counties-across-america.html
A new poll shows that in key swing counties that will decide the Electoral College winner in the upcoming general election, former Vice President Joe Biden is trouncing Donald Trump.
According to the latest Monmouth University poll, the overall national race between Biden and Trump is tight, with the former VP leading Trump 48 percent to 45 percent.
But for the president, a more troubling piece of data from the survey is that Biden leads by a whopping nine percentage points in 300 swing counties across America.
According to Monmouth, “In approximately 300 ‘swing’ counties where the margin of victory was less than ten points for either candidate – accounting for about one-fifth of the total U.S. electorate – 50% back Biden compared with 41% who support Trump.”
“The poll results suggest Biden may actually be starting out with an advantage in crucial swing areas of the country,” he added.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how large or small Biden’s national popular vote margin is as long as he performs well in regions of the country that decide the Electoral College winner.
Polling shows that – at least right now – the former vice president appears to be doing just that.
New Poll Shows Biden Trouncing Trump In 300 Swing Counties Across America
Tue, Mar 24th, 2020 by Sean Colarossi
https://www.politicususa.com/2020/03/24/new-poll-shows-biden-trouncing-trump-in-300-swing-counties-across-america.html
A new poll shows that in key swing counties that will decide the Electoral College winner in the upcoming general election, former Vice President Joe Biden is trouncing Donald Trump.
According to the latest Monmouth University poll, the overall national race between Biden and Trump is tight, with the former VP leading Trump 48 percent to 45 percent.
But for the president, a more troubling piece of data from the survey is that Biden leads by a whopping nine percentage points in 300 swing counties across America.
According to Monmouth, “In approximately 300 ‘swing’ counties where the margin of victory was less than ten points for either candidate – accounting for about one-fifth of the total U.S. electorate – 50% back Biden compared with 41% who support Trump.”
“The poll results suggest Biden may actually be starting out with an advantage in crucial swing areas of the country,” he added.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how large or small Biden’s national popular vote margin is as long as he performs well in regions of the country that decide the Electoral College winner.
Polling shows that – at least right now – the former vice president appears to be doing just that.
I follow you except that I see FL as Trump's necktie.
Oh Great White North, glorious and freee, we stand on guard, we stand on guard for the return of hockeee.
Give those lyrics a try in any bar still open up there and let me know how it is received.
This map uses smart thermometers to detect potential surges in COVID-19 cases
03-20-20CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
Using symptom and fever data, a smart thermometer company is watching for early signs of COVID-19.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90479800/this-map-uses-smart-thermometers-to-detect-potential-surges-in-covid-19-cases
Kinsa, a smart thermometer company, has published a map tracking illness across the country. For the last five years, the company has tracked the flu down to the county level. Now, it’s using its real-time temperature data to suss out early signs of COVID-19 across the U.S.
Created in collaboration with Benjamin Dalziel, an assistant professor at Oregon State University’s department of biology, the map uses current sickness levels to predict illness weeks into the future, then it compares that projection against typical flu levels.
What that yields is a map highlighting areas where people are getting sicker than should be expected. The company refers to this latter category as “atypical illness” or unexpected outbreak. Much of the atypical illness map is gray, denoting either normal levels of illness or insufficient data. But certain areas, like Florida, are washed in red and orange.
“Now I cannot definitely tell you that the unexpected outbreak is COVID-19, but I can tell you something weird is going on here,” says Inder Singh, Kinsa’s CEO and founder. Because of the speed with which the coronavirus is spreading, there is a chance that the additional illness could be COVID-19.
However, he says that by layering in other data from public health departments or health system information about emergency room visits, the platform can know more specifically what is causing an outbreak.
[Screenshot: Kinsa, Created in collaboration with Benjamin Dalziel, Oregon State University]
“In Brooklyn, NY, we begin to see anomalous events into the second week of March,” the company notes in a blog post explaining its methods. “This provides us with guidance of where potential COVID-19 outbreaks may be occurring.”
Example plot for how this method would be used to identify potential COVID-19 outbreaks in real-time. Expected influenza forecasts are generated from a point prior to outbreak, and anomalies falling outside of the 95% confidence limit are identified each day.
Kinsa’s smart thermometer connects to an app, where users can record their temperature as well as other symptoms. The platform is HIPAA compliant, so Kinsa doesn’t see any one person’s health information. However, that data in aggregate is still quite powerful.
To date, the company has 2 million users covering 70% to 80% of the U.S. and growing. This data has allowed Kinsa to glean insights into how a virus moves from one county to another or across a state. It also shows places where an illness is taking hold in real time.
Singh says demand for thermometers have gone up dramatically; the company is selling 10,000 units per day. Kinsa thermometers sold out in the U.S. last night, but Singh says he’s expecting a shipment of 20,000 next week. He plans to have 30,000 to ship to the U.S. every week thereafter.
The company plans to update the map continuously as it gets in new data. It will also add descriptions at the bottom detailing analysis of individual areas to provide more detail on what may be causing the atypical illness. For example, one area may be experiencing an increase in a different illness, like H1N1, rather than COVID-19.
“We may need more penetration in some of these rural counties, but some of these counties have such low population it may not even be possible to get that data,” says Singh. “What I want is government support to scale up so we can detect atypical illness with incredible accuracy.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ruth Reader is a writer for Fast Company. She covers the intersection of health and technology.
This map uses smart thermometers to detect potential surges in COVID-19 cases
03-20-20CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
Using symptom and fever data, a smart thermometer company is watching for early signs of COVID-19.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90479800/this-map-uses-smart-thermometers-to-detect-potential-surges-in-covid-19-cases
Kinsa, a smart thermometer company, has published a map tracking illness across the country. For the last five years, the company has tracked the flu down to the county level. Now, it’s using its real-time temperature data to suss out early signs of COVID-19 across the U.S.
Created in collaboration with Benjamin Dalziel, an assistant professor at Oregon State University’s department of biology, the map uses current sickness levels to predict illness weeks into the future, then it compares that projection against typical flu levels.
What that yields is a map highlighting areas where people are getting sicker than should be expected. The company refers to this latter category as “atypical illness” or unexpected outbreak. Much of the atypical illness map is gray, denoting either normal levels of illness or insufficient data. But certain areas, like Florida, are washed in red and orange.
“Now I cannot definitely tell you that the unexpected outbreak is COVID-19, but I can tell you something weird is going on here,” says Inder Singh, Kinsa’s CEO and founder. Because of the speed with which the coronavirus is spreading, there is a chance that the additional illness could be COVID-19.
However, he says that by layering in other data from public health departments or health system information about emergency room visits, the platform can know more specifically what is causing an outbreak.
[Screenshot: Kinsa, Created in collaboration with Benjamin Dalziel, Oregon State University]
“In Brooklyn, NY, we begin to see anomalous events into the second week of March,” the company notes in a blog post explaining its methods. “This provides us with guidance of where potential COVID-19 outbreaks may be occurring.”
Example plot for how this method would be used to identify potential COVID-19 outbreaks in real-time. Expected influenza forecasts are generated from a point prior to outbreak, and anomalies falling outside of the 95% confidence limit are identified each day.
Kinsa’s smart thermometer connects to an app, where users can record their temperature as well as other symptoms. The platform is HIPAA compliant, so Kinsa doesn’t see any one person’s health information. However, that data in aggregate is still quite powerful.
To date, the company has 2 million users covering 70% to 80% of the U.S. and growing. This data has allowed Kinsa to glean insights into how a virus moves from one county to another or across a state. It also shows places where an illness is taking hold in real time.
Singh says demand for thermometers have gone up dramatically; the company is selling 10,000 units per day. Kinsa thermometers sold out in the U.S. last night, but Singh says he’s expecting a shipment of 20,000 next week. He plans to have 30,000 to ship to the U.S. every week thereafter.
The company plans to update the map continuously as it gets in new data. It will also add descriptions at the bottom detailing analysis of individual areas to provide more detail on what may be causing the atypical illness. For example, one area may be experiencing an increase in a different illness, like H1N1, rather than COVID-19.
“We may need more penetration in some of these rural counties, but some of these counties have such low population it may not even be possible to get that data,” says Singh. “What I want is government support to scale up so we can detect atypical illness with incredible accuracy.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ruth Reader is a writer for Fast Company. She covers the intersection of health and technology.
At least we'll be spared the sight of the Big Orange Dufus and Melania supervising an Eater Egg hunt on the WH lawn.
I'm sure it is proposed as a one off.
Proposed and DEclined.
I'm going to quote Lyndon Johnson and suggest that Shumer approach Mnuchin with this end in mind.....
"I want his pecker in my pocket."
This Blog is Better Than the Disease, But Worse Than the Cure, or I Don’t Even Know What to Wear to a Culling
Tuesday, March 24th, 2020
by Shower Cap | American Madness Journal
http://showercapblog.com/this-blog-is-better-than-the-disease-but-worse-than-the-cure-or-i-dont-even-know-what-to-wear-to-a-culling/
Well, it was difficult to find time in my busy schedule of drinking beer and perpetually re-sterilizing every inch of my apartment, but I figured I’d drop by for a quick news round-up.
It’s been a real positive, uplifting, week, full of daisies and puppies and exotic French pastries, except for that one thing that’s fucking up every aspect of life on Earth. Also there were no daisies, puppies, or pastries. Sorry.
In the midst of the greatest global emergency since the international success of the Blue (Da Ba Dee) song, the Shart House has been hard at work. On containing the virus, or procuring desperately-needed equipment for the hospitals about to experience catastrophic shortages?
Don’t be silly, the Clowncar Full of Bleeding Rectums running the country is focusing on the really important shit: a government-wide communications strategy to blame China for everything from the coronavirus to the economic crash to the photographs that make Tangerine Idi Amin’s ass look half a mile wide in golf pants.
Beyond the endless, fatal, fuckups, the Turdworm Administration is also staying on-brand by using the coronavirus crisis to attempt a clumsy dictatorial power grab, how predictable, if terrifying. Yes, Redactor General Billy Barr wants the authority to detain folks indefinitely without trial during emergencies, and you can go ahead and mark me down as FUCK NO, YOU FART-SNIFFING FASCISTS on that one.
I swear, that Barr kid is like a poorly-trained dog, always snatching food off the counter if you turn your back on him for a minute…only with freedom instead of bacon.
Is there anything Rand Pauler than Rand Paul catching the coronavirus, and smugly going about his life, giving a staunch libertarian middle finger to social distancing, lunchin’ with his homies, spreading his disease (in addition to his everyday Paul family cooties, of course) all over the Senate gym, sending several of his colleagues into quarantine?
You’re such a rugged individual, Rand! Surely you won’t require any medical treatment, we can just drop you off at the edge of the jungle with a bow and arrow, and you can hunt and kill your own ventilator.
Republicans, bless their blackened, bile-pumping, little hearts, tried to structure the emergency stimulus bill so it would dump $500 billion directly into a bucket in Steve Mnuchin’s office, which he would then disperse however the fancy struck him, with no oversight whatsoever, and even the added proviso that he could conceal the identities of the recipients for six months.
Like, “Surprise! We gave sixty million dollars to Marm-a-Lago while every small business in your hometown withered and died!” I’m just trying to imagine the possible non-corrupt reasons to keep stimulus payments secret, and giving thanks that the crooks in charge aren’t better crooks.
Turns out last July, Hairplug Himmler, in one of those fits of very stable genius that overtake him from time to time, figured he’d trim down the big, bad, government by eliminating the position of a certain CDC expert. Whose job was to monitor disease outbreaks. In China.
Hindsight is 20/20 and all, and in the end, this would have simply meant one more expert for the bloated jackass to ignore, but honestly, if, hypothetically, Donald Trump knew in advance this outbreak was coming, and he wanted it to inflict maximum damage on the United States…is there anything he’d have done differently? He is a machine that fucks things up, and is damn near perfect in that regard.
All of us are having trouble adjusting to life under quarantine, of course. Routines have been disrupted, and emotional needs are going unmet. It’s really tough to live without all those little snippets of human contact one takes for granted; the familiar strangers from your morning commute, the barista who starts your drink the moment you walk in the door, the joggers and dog-walkers and stroller-pushing young parents who populate your neighborhood sidewalks. And if you happen to be a tar-souled narcissistic egomaniac, hopelessly addicted the adrenaline rush that comes from whipping angry mobs into deranged, hateful, frenzies, well…then you’ve got real problems.
Luckily for him, if not for the safety and health of the general public, the Marmalade Shartcannon has jury-rigged a passable substitute for his Klan rallies, and he even gets to pretend they’re press conferences.
The howls of blind adulation may be missing, but the other elements translate rather cleanly: self-praise, whinging victimhood, sinister misinformation, and all the lies you can handle for only 7.99, add the dessert bar for just a dollar more.
Not to disrupt any boiling frogs or anything, but it is Ken-Russell-on-bad-acid insane that we find ourselves at this dizzyingly fucked up point, where this self-serving madman, this barely-human poosquirt, is handed this enormous platform, every single goddamn day, to shamelessly belch out whatever dangerous fabrications he imagines will hold his poll numbers up for a few more hours, without a single passing thought for the well-being of his millions of constituents, and nobody seems to know how to stop him.
It’s very strange, not being able to believe the President during a time of crisis, but I confess it’s even stranger that anyone anywhere still trusts that mendacious bag of excised colon polyps. Like, folks, this is the same sad little clown who launched his term with a pathetic series of falsehoods about the size of his inauguration crowd, you’re really gonna defer to his snake-oil-peddling ass when it comes to medical treatment?
Over the actual FDA? And real doctors? Unbelievably, some folks do, and Fat Q*Bert’s cynical pimping of an untested malaria drug as a miracle corona cure, while a transparent bid to trick the stock market into thinking everything’s copacetic, has actually prompted nationwide shortages, to the chagrin of those who actually, y’know, need the stuff to live.
And of course, a man has already died, and his wife was hospitalized, after swallowing chloroquine phosphate on their Turd Emperor’s expert advice. While President Crotchrot’s handling of the entire situation has been a disaster sandwich between two slices of What the Fuck is Wrong with You, you have to give the old dolt credit, he keeps finding innovative new ways to get people killed.
With the nation looking to the steady, even, hand of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for much-needed comfort, his Florida counterpart, a walking butter statue by the name of Ron DeSantis, refuses to take necessary precautions and lock down the Sunshine State, even as, to the shock of literally no living thing, spring break beach partiers who defied calls for social distancing have begun coming down with COVID-19.
It’s certainly an unconventional political strategy, actively facilitating the deaths of thousands of your constituents, and I’m excited to see how it plays out when Ronboy seeks reelection in 2022, assuming we aren’t all clubbing one another with tire irons over ten-year-old cans of Beefaroni by then.
So, a fun way to pass time during quarantine is to start a “Fauci watch” group with your friends on social media, wherein everyone makes bets on how long it will take for Government Cheese Goebbels to finally fire the only member of his team that still holds the public’s trust, for the high crime of Telling Folks the Truth Rather Than Comforting Lies That Will Only Get More Americans Killed in the Long Run.
Frankly, between his competence and expertise, I’m surprised Dr. Fauci hasn’t been replaced by Diamond and/or Silk already.
Sorry serfs, but your feudal overlords have grown weary of this whole “taking the steps needed to combat a global pandemic” thing, now that the truly important shit (money) is involved, so it’s time for all you filthy takers to get your asses back to the charnel house, excuse me, the “workplace.”
Yes, the malignantly wealthy, through the mouths of their demonic spokesgoons at Fux Nooz, have announced “the cure is worse than the problem,” because all this life-saving social distancing has cut into their yacht-and-racehorse funds, which simply will not do…why can’t the lesser classes have the good manners to understand how expendable they are?
President Liposuction Clinic Dumpster really wants to “re-open” the economy, and he’s not gonna let anything silly, like “scientists and doctors,” or “mountains of human corpses” spoil his fun.
One of the few remaining functional processes in the wad of used chewing gum he has for a brain reminds him constantly that bad economy = no reelection = no presidential immunity = bunkmates with Harvey Weinstein, so please understand he would giddily accept any death toll, however high, to get the stock market back up, even it means going from hospital to hospital to personally unplug ventilators with very own (tiny, inadequate) hands.
Defying all common sense and basic decency, the murderous idiot actually wants to relax the standards that haven’t even been in place long enough, or universally enough, to slow the spread of this wily motherfucker.
He’s openly fantasizing about shit being more or less back to normal come Easter. When that doesn’t happen, because the body count will have a couple more zeros tacked on by then, expect him to recklessly tell the nation that COVID-19 can be cured by ingesting a mixture of bleach, paprika, and Marshmallow Peeps.
(It goes without saying that doing things Donnie Dotard’s way only leads to the worst of both worlds; more senseless deaths, and all the economic damage plus more to boot, but you have to look at it from his point of view…I mean, what if tomorrow never comes?)
In addition to the ridiculous cure/disease branding, he’s test-driving some fresh new bullshit about quarantining leading to a massive wave of suicides, presumably because folks will just be so goshdarn distraught at the financial losses of the Republican donor class.
Can’t speak for y’all, but along with my stash of Pringles and beer, thinking about Sheldon Adelson’s vanishing billions is just about all that’s keeping me going lately. In fact, ruminating on it right now, I’m about as far from suicide as the night I lost my virginity.
Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is certainly eager to serve as conductor aboard America’s 3:10 to Yuma, taking it upon himself to speak for all of the nation’s elderly, and volunteering them as willing sacrifices to the voracious volcano god men call the Dow Jones.
Ah yes, as the saying goes, when the going gets tough, the tough immediately propose mass murder of the old. It’s been, like, a week. Dan. Bro. Let’s pursue a few non-genocidal solutions before we jump right into Soylent Green territory, okay?
And yes, even as the turds deposited by this shitstorm bury us up to our goddamn necks, the Treasonweasel Administration is STILL fighting in court to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, because obviously what this country really needs right now is a few million more uninsured folks, especially with the ranks of the unemployed swelling by the hour, with no place to turn for insurance but the Obamacare exchanges.
Their unerring instinct for making shitty situations even shittier leads me to believe that while the medical equipment shortage isn’t likely to be addressed any time soon, Stephen Miller will likely organize the release of immense swarms of bees into every hospital in America within the week.
Anyway, the rest is all most bad news. The Olympics are postponed and Terrence McNally died and Donald Trump didn’t. What can I say? It’s kinda like “It’s raining men” only with shit instead of men.
To all my readers out there, I don’t think I need to say this, but I value you a great deal more than the stock market,* so please take care of yourselves out there. We’ll pull through this crap, and the party we throw when we finally fire these rat finks in November will be all the sweeter for it. See y’all soon.
*Not you, Kevin.
Older Shit You Probably Already Forgot About
http://showercapblog.com/maybe-the-quarantine-is-to-keep-us-from-storming-richard-burrs-office/
This Blog is Better Than the Disease, But Worse Than the Cure, or I Don’t Even Know What to Wear to a Culling
Tuesday, March 24th, 2020
by Shower Cap | American Madness Journal
http://showercapblog.com/this-blog-is-better-than-the-disease-but-worse-than-the-cure-or-i-dont-even-know-what-to-wear-to-a-culling/
Well, it was difficult to find time in my busy schedule of drinking beer and perpetually re-sterilizing every inch of my apartment, but I figured I’d drop by for a quick news round-up.
It’s been a real positive, uplifting, week, full of daisies and puppies and exotic French pastries, except for that one thing that’s fucking up every aspect of life on Earth. Also there were no daisies, puppies, or pastries. Sorry.
In the midst of the greatest global emergency since the international success of the Blue (Da Ba Dee) song, the Shart House has been hard at work. On containing the virus, or procuring desperately-needed equipment for the hospitals about to experience catastrophic shortages?
Don’t be silly, the Clowncar Full of Bleeding Rectums running the country is focusing on the really important shit: a government-wide communications strategy to blame China for everything from the coronavirus to the economic crash to the photographs that make Tangerine Idi Amin’s ass look half a mile wide in golf pants.
Beyond the endless, fatal, fuckups, the Turdworm Administration is also staying on-brand by using the coronavirus crisis to attempt a clumsy dictatorial power grab, how predictable, if terrifying. Yes, Redactor General Billy Barr wants the authority to detain folks indefinitely without trial during emergencies, and you can go ahead and mark me down as FUCK NO, YOU FART-SNIFFING FASCISTS on that one.
I swear, that Barr kid is like a poorly-trained dog, always snatching food off the counter if you turn your back on him for a minute…only with freedom instead of bacon.
Is there anything Rand Pauler than Rand Paul catching the coronavirus, and smugly going about his life, giving a staunch libertarian middle finger to social distancing, lunchin’ with his homies, spreading his disease (in addition to his everyday Paul family cooties, of course) all over the Senate gym, sending several of his colleagues into quarantine?
You’re such a rugged individual, Rand! Surely you won’t require any medical treatment, we can just drop you off at the edge of the jungle with a bow and arrow, and you can hunt and kill your own ventilator.
Republicans, bless their blackened, bile-pumping, little hearts, tried to structure the emergency stimulus bill so it would dump $500 billion directly into a bucket in Steve Mnuchin’s office, which he would then disperse however the fancy struck him, with no oversight whatsoever, and even the added proviso that he could conceal the identities of the recipients for six months.
Like, “Surprise! We gave sixty million dollars to Marm-a-Lago while every small business in your hometown withered and died!” I’m just trying to imagine the possible non-corrupt reasons to keep stimulus payments secret, and giving thanks that the crooks in charge aren’t better crooks.
Turns out last July, Hairplug Himmler, in one of those fits of very stable genius that overtake him from time to time, figured he’d trim down the big, bad, government by eliminating the position of a certain CDC expert. Whose job was to monitor disease outbreaks. In China.
Hindsight is 20/20 and all, and in the end, this would have simply meant one more expert for the bloated jackass to ignore, but honestly, if, hypothetically, Donald Trump knew in advance this outbreak was coming, and he wanted it to inflict maximum damage on the United States…is there anything he’d have done differently? He is a machine that fucks things up, and is damn near perfect in that regard.
All of us are having trouble adjusting to life under quarantine, of course. Routines have been disrupted, and emotional needs are going unmet. It’s really tough to live without all those little snippets of human contact one takes for granted; the familiar strangers from your morning commute, the barista who starts your drink the moment you walk in the door, the joggers and dog-walkers and stroller-pushing young parents who populate your neighborhood sidewalks. And if you happen to be a tar-souled narcissistic egomaniac, hopelessly addicted the adrenaline rush that comes from whipping angry mobs into deranged, hateful, frenzies, well…then you’ve got real problems.
Luckily for him, if not for the safety and health of the general public, the Marmalade Shartcannon has jury-rigged a passable substitute for his Klan rallies, and he even gets to pretend they’re press conferences.
The howls of blind adulation may be missing, but the other elements translate rather cleanly: self-praise, whinging victimhood, sinister misinformation, and all the lies you can handle for only 7.99, add the dessert bar for just a dollar more.
Not to disrupt any boiling frogs or anything, but it is Ken-Russell-on-bad-acid insane that we find ourselves at this dizzyingly fucked up point, where this self-serving madman, this barely-human poosquirt, is handed this enormous platform, every single goddamn day, to shamelessly belch out whatever dangerous fabrications he imagines will hold his poll numbers up for a few more hours, without a single passing thought for the well-being of his millions of constituents, and nobody seems to know how to stop him.
It’s very strange, not being able to believe the President during a time of crisis, but I confess it’s even stranger that anyone anywhere still trusts that mendacious bag of excised colon polyps. Like, folks, this is the same sad little clown who launched his term with a pathetic series of falsehoods about the size of his inauguration crowd, you’re really gonna defer to his snake-oil-peddling ass when it comes to medical treatment?
Over the actual FDA? And real doctors? Unbelievably, some folks do, and Fat Q*Bert’s cynical pimping of an untested malaria drug as a miracle corona cure, while a transparent bid to trick the stock market into thinking everything’s copacetic, has actually prompted nationwide shortages, to the chagrin of those who actually, y’know, need the stuff to live.
And of course, a man has already died, and his wife was hospitalized, after swallowing chloroquine phosphate on their Turd Emperor’s expert advice. While President Crotchrot’s handling of the entire situation has been a disaster sandwich between two slices of What the Fuck is Wrong with You, you have to give the old dolt credit, he keeps finding innovative new ways to get people killed.
With the nation looking to the steady, even, hand of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for much-needed comfort, his Florida counterpart, a walking butter statue by the name of Ron DeSantis, refuses to take necessary precautions and lock down the Sunshine State, even as, to the shock of literally no living thing, spring break beach partiers who defied calls for social distancing have begun coming down with COVID-19.
It’s certainly an unconventional political strategy, actively facilitating the deaths of thousands of your constituents, and I’m excited to see how it plays out when Ronboy seeks reelection in 2022, assuming we aren’t all clubbing one another with tire irons over ten-year-old cans of Beefaroni by then.
So, a fun way to pass time during quarantine is to start a “Fauci watch” group with your friends on social media, wherein everyone makes bets on how long it will take for Government Cheese Goebbels to finally fire the only member of his team that still holds the public’s trust, for the high crime of Telling Folks the Truth Rather Than Comforting Lies That Will Only Get More Americans Killed in the Long Run.
Frankly, between his competence and expertise, I’m surprised Dr. Fauci hasn’t been replaced by Diamond and/or Silk already.
Sorry serfs, but your feudal overlords have grown weary of this whole “taking the steps needed to combat a global pandemic” thing, now that the truly important shit (money) is involved, so it’s time for all you filthy takers to get your asses back to the charnel house, excuse me, the “workplace.”
Yes, the malignantly wealthy, through the mouths of their demonic spokesgoons at Fux Nooz, have announced “the cure is worse than the problem,” because all this life-saving social distancing has cut into their yacht-and-racehorse funds, which simply will not do…why can’t the lesser classes have the good manners to understand how expendable they are?
President Liposuction Clinic Dumpster really wants to “re-open” the economy, and he’s not gonna let anything silly, like “scientists and doctors,” or “mountains of human corpses” spoil his fun.
One of the few remaining functional processes in the wad of used chewing gum he has for a brain reminds him constantly that bad economy = no reelection = no presidential immunity = bunkmates with Harvey Weinstein, so please understand he would giddily accept any death toll, however high, to get the stock market back up, even it means going from hospital to hospital to personally unplug ventilators with very own (tiny, inadequate) hands.
Defying all common sense and basic decency, the murderous idiot actually wants to relax the standards that haven’t even been in place long enough, or universally enough, to slow the spread of this wily motherfucker.
He’s openly fantasizing about shit being more or less back to normal come Easter. When that doesn’t happen, because the body count will have a couple more zeros tacked on by then, expect him to recklessly tell the nation that COVID-19 can be cured by ingesting a mixture of bleach, paprika, and Marshmallow Peeps.
(It goes without saying that doing things Donnie Dotard’s way only leads to the worst of both worlds; more senseless deaths, and all the economic damage plus more to boot, but you have to look at it from his point of view…I mean, what if tomorrow never comes?)
In addition to the ridiculous cure/disease branding, he’s test-driving some fresh new bullshit about quarantining leading to a massive wave of suicides, presumably because folks will just be so goshdarn distraught at the financial losses of the Republican donor class.
Can’t speak for y’all, but along with my stash of Pringles and beer, thinking about Sheldon Adelson’s vanishing billions is just about all that’s keeping me going lately. In fact, ruminating on it right now, I’m about as far from suicide as the night I lost my virginity.
Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is certainly eager to serve as conductor aboard America’s 3:10 to Yuma, taking it upon himself to speak for all of the nation’s elderly, and volunteering them as willing sacrifices to the voracious volcano god men call the Dow Jones.
Ah yes, as the saying goes, when the going gets tough, the tough immediately propose mass murder of the old. It’s been, like, a week. Dan. Bro. Let’s pursue a few non-genocidal solutions before we jump right into Soylent Green territory, okay?
And yes, even as the turds deposited by this shitstorm bury us up to our goddamn necks, the Treasonweasel Administration is STILL fighting in court to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, because obviously what this country really needs right now is a few million more uninsured folks, especially with the ranks of the unemployed swelling by the hour, with no place to turn for insurance but the Obamacare exchanges.
Their unerring instinct for making shitty situations even shittier leads me to believe that while the medical equipment shortage isn’t likely to be addressed any time soon, Stephen Miller will likely organize the release of immense swarms of bees into every hospital in America within the week.
Anyway, the rest is all most bad news. The Olympics are postponed and Terrence McNally died and Donald Trump didn’t. What can I say? It’s kinda like “It’s raining men” only with shit instead of men.
To all my readers out there, I don’t think I need to say this, but I value you a great deal more than the stock market,* so please take care of yourselves out there. We’ll pull through this crap, and the party we throw when we finally fire these rat finks in November will be all the sweeter for it. See y’all soon.
*Not you, Kevin.
Older Shit You Probably Already Forgot About
http://showercapblog.com/maybe-the-quarantine-is-to-keep-us-from-storming-richard-burrs-office/
You really need to learn how to judge opinion on the merits of the arguments in it, and how well supported they are by the facts.
For example....
"You are failing the people that elected you to act as Senator, but instead you act as [a] Russian puppet," Weissman wrote. "You have also blocked bipartisan bills that would protect elections in our country. This gives Russia more opportunities to interfere in our elections."
That actually happened, and it's been widely reported.
This actually happened too...…
…."the guy who removed the sanctions from the Russian so he could come start an Aluminum mine in my state."
Report: Kentucky aluminum plant benefited from McConnell-backed effort to lift Russian sanctions
August 14, 2019
https://theweek.com/speedreads/858887/report-kentucky-aluminum-plant-benefited-from-mcconnellbacked-effort-lift-russian-sanctions
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is denying that he knew a project in his home state would benefit from the U.S. ending sanctions against a Russian oligarch.
In January, nearly a dozen Republicans broke away from McConnell and joined Democrats in voting to block the Trump administration from lifting sanctions on companies owned by Oleg Deripaska, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. They didn't reach the 60 votes necessary to advance the resolution, and a few weeks later, the government lifted the sanctions against Deripaska and Rusal, Russia's largest aluminum producer.
Three months after that, The Washington Post reports, Rusal announced it was partnering with Braidy Industries on an aluminum-rolling mill in Ashland, Kentucky, with Rusal supplying $200 million in capital for a 40 percent stake in the plant.
The night before the Senate voted on lifting sanctions, Braidy Industries' founder, Craig Bouchard, had dinner in Zurich with Rusal's head of sales. Bouchard told the Post they did not discuss the Senate vote, and Braidy Industries did not tell any government officials that lifting sanctions would be beneficial. Rusal's parent company, EN+, told the Post the Kentucky project had nothing to do with its aggressive lobbying to get sanctions dropped, and McConnell's spokesman, David Popp, said McConnell "was not aware of any potential Russian investor before the vote."
Democratic lawmakers are suspicious of the timing, and have asked the government to review the deal. "It is shocking how blatantly transactional this arrangement looks," Michael McFaul, U.S. ambassador to Russia during the Obama administration, told the Post. Bouchard doesn't see it that way. "You just can't be so picky," he said. "Whoever is going to help us go in and rebuild this place that's been decimated, we just welcome it, with open arms." —Catherine Garcia
Your silence on the shit in it speaks volumes. Go back and read my posts and tell us which provisions you agree with and which you don't.
It's not a talking point......
https://www.newsweek.com/former-trump-supporter-moscow-mitch-nickname-1457747
A well-known former supporter of President Donald Trump joined in on the "Moscow Mitch" criticism of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell with an open letter telling the Republican, "if you don't like this nickname, do your job."
David Weissman, who also previously backed McConnell had harsh words for the senator in an open letter published Wednesday by The Times of Israel. Critics started calling McConnell "Moscow Mitch" since the leader blocked election security bills in July, despite evidence Russian interfered in the 2016 elections. Weissman's letter came a day after various Moscow Mitch hashtags trended on Twitter after McConnell complained about the nickname.
"Sir, we are living in troubled times," Weissman started, and brought up racism, hate crimes, mass shootings and easy access to guns and military-style assault rifles. The Army veteran wrote that Democrats and Republicans have come up with several pieces of legislation "for common sense gun reform that majority of Americans are begging for" but that "these bills sit on you desk, ignored."
"You are failing the people that elected you to act as Senator, but instead you act as [a] Russian puppet," Weissman wrote. "You have also blocked bipartisan bills that would protect elections in our country. This gives Russia more opportunities to interfere in our elections."
Weissman wrote that McConnell is "single-handedly putting our democracy at risk."
"This is why the people are calling you Moscow Mitch," Weissman wrote. "If you don't like this nickname, do your job and represent the American people."
Weissman told Newsweek on Wednesday afternoon that he penned the open letter because "there's been way too many mass shootings in our country and Mitch is the one that's stopping any prevention that can lower gun violence."
David Weissman
?
@davidmweissman
Right off the press, my latest; Open Letter to #MoscowMitch @senatemajldr https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/open-letter-to-moscow-mitch/ …
The veteran said he once supported McConnell "because I originally believed that it was the Democrats that were out there to take away our rights away." Weissman stopped supporting Trump in early 2018, and the Republican Party as well around the same time, after coming to the belief that much of the GOP's work is "based on lies about the Democratic Party."
Weissman added that the Second Amendment does not state that anyone can own a gun "and not everyone should," and said he had "less respect for Mitch because he does take money from the NRA [National Rifle Association]."
"You take money from the NRA and Russia which is preventing you from making the right decisions to secure our Democracy and safety of the American people," Weissman wrote, concluding that "if you continue these acts, which I know you will, I will do all I can to help [McConnell Senate challenger] Amy McGrath to replace you in office."
Tuesday, McConnell complained on the right-wing Hugh Hewitt Show about the Moscow Mitch nickname and called it "modern-day McCarthyism."
"Unbelievable for a Cold Warrior like me who spent a career standing up to the Russians to be given a moniker like that. It's an effort to smear me. You know, I can laugh about things like the 'Grim Reaper,'" he said of a nickname he gave himself, "But calling me 'Moscow Mitch' is over the top."
After McConnell's comments, members of The Democratic Coalition pushed several hashtags and got #MoscowMitchHatesAmerica and #MoscowMitch to top the United States Twitter trends list.
"Instead of working on gun reform legislation, Moscow Mitch was busy whining on radio about his new nickname," the coalition's co-founder Scott Dworkin told Newsweek on Wednesday afternoon.
Since becoming a liberal Democrat, Weissman has voiced his disapproval of Trump, the Republican Party and its policies on platforms including Twitter, where he has more than 92,000 followers. In a blog post last month, after mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, Weissman called for the NRA to be defunded and said conservative pundits should not be allowed to control gun laws.
"I have asked you the same from you. And no answer."
NOT accurate. I have responded to far more of your fact-challenged one sided posts than most have on this board.
You are the one who believes that the McConnell Bill is just peachy. I posted specifics as to why it wasn't.
You could have very easily countered with 'I don't like this provision or that one either.'
You chose not to, so I fairly take it that you approve a really shitty bill for the people who need help the most. Because that is what the McConnell Bill was.
And that's partly why I post the rudest and most profane material.... from other authors. We're both inoculated.
I LOVE that word. Triggers the shit out of anti-vaxxers.
First of all not my words but rather those of a poster on Democratic Underground,
Secondly, bad choice of words, 'sanctimonious'.
I believe the author mirrors the contempt and ridicule that Trump and the hypocritical right have earned.
I asked you not to post on the Bill unless or until you respond to the lame parts of it proposed by the GOP, that I posted twice. Having a tough time with that, huh?
We still don't know what has been left in the Bill or added to it.
So get yourself lathered up all you like about 'government control' and OPM while overlooking the government control that will be needed to enforce right to life laws and the GOP willingness to use our tax dollars for all of the usual suspects, and without oversight, large companies over small companies, the wealthy over the wage earners......
A veritable Petry dish of stupid, grievance and resentment nurturing, conspiracy theorists. Add virus, thin herd.
The scientific method, Trump version, consists of six, no, eight steps:
•Define purpose.
•Construct hypothesis.
*Hope to See.
•Test the hypothesis and collect data.
•Analyze data.
*Discard data and replace with Hope to See.
•Draw conclusion.
•Communicate results/word salad the shit out of it.
Rand is an Ayn Rand libertarian I can do whatever I feel like fuck you ass-hat.
Atlas Sneezed, developed a dry cough, upper respiratory distress and.…..xxxx.
Sick of the GOP talking points on everything, but this one REALLY grinds my gears...
Here you go, hook....a 'no, how do you REALLY feel?' post for ya. LOL!
This idea that "the cure can't be worse than the disease"...I want to choke the motherfuckers that are running around parroting this as if it were humane or anything but a monstrous clarion call to place profits over people forever.
I swear to god, the next time a Republican hypocrite even TRIES to utter the phrase "pro-life" NEAR me, there is going to be a jaw broken and it won't be mine. They can ram that line of bullshit straight up their ass, through their intestines, into their stomachs and right out their filthy fucking hypocrite mouths.
Pro-Life? FUCK YOU, you anti-women, anti-elders, pro-profit pieces of shit. Seriously, FUCK. YOU.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213166421
I'm sure it is proposed as a one off. Unemployment benefits, for those covered, are over a period of time and are subject to extensions as in the '08/'09 recession.
This is the link for the entire article.....
https://www.vox.com/2020/3/23/21191244/nancy-pelosi-house-democrats-coronavirus-stimulus-bill
Bottom of my original post.
I'd take a look at them too, and Gavin Newsome as well.
No, they differ in that I linked my claims to an opinion piece, that cited actual provisions in the GOP bill, and because there were further quotes in that link supporting the claims against the GOP Bill.
Why are GOP priorities to favor large business over small businesses, both size businesses over individuals, bailouts of industries that impact Tromp properties and this GOP poison pill in particular.....
A major sticking point has been a $500 billion fund, demanded by Republicans, to backstop loans and other guarantees extended to the large industries hit hardest by the crisis, including the airline and cruise line companies. Democrats want strings attached to that lending to ensure that taxpayer dollars aren't used for stock buybacks or CEO compensation, and to protect the employees of those companies from being laid off.
…..acceptable to you?
Which side has the more reasonable demand, the one that impacts individual workers most favorably?
Pelosi warns against 'poison pills' as Senate negotiators near a stimulus deal
By Mike Lillis - 03/24/20 10:18 AM EDT
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/489193-pelosi-warns-against-poison-pills-as-senate-negotiators-near-a-stimulus-deal
Speaker Nancy Pelosi(D-Calif.) on Tuesday said she's hopeful Congress can reach on a deal a massive coronavirus relief package by day's end, but warned that Republican "poison pills" could gum up the process and prompt House Democrats to move their own legislation.
Pelosi said Democrats remain insistent that a $500 billion allotment to help major industries must include greater oversight and transparency, and she hammered GOP leaders for their resistance to including billions of dollars for food stamps.
If Senate and White House negotiators are able to iron out those differences, she said, the House could accept the Senate bill and likely pass it quickly by unanimous consent, allowing the House to remain in recess.
But she warned that she's ready to call the House back to Washington to move the Democrats' alternative proposal, unveiled Monday night, if her caucus deems the upper chamber bill too favorable toward corporations while neglecting workers and lower-income families.
"The easiest way to do it is for us to put aside some of our concerns for another day, and get this done," she said in an interview with CNBC. "If it has poison pills in it — and they know certain things are poison pills — then they don't want unanimous consent, they just want an ideological statement."
The comments arrive as Senate leaders are scrambling to secure a bipartisan agreement on a massive package — now approaching $2 trillion — to prop up the sinking U.S. economy amid the coronavirus outbreak, which has led to a sharp spike in unemployment as businesses have been forced to close down, entire industries have scaled back services, and consumers are driven indoors.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schume(D-N.Y.) huddled periodically all day Monday to iron out the lingering disagreements, emerging just before midnight to say they're on the cusp of a deal.
Democrats in both chambers had howled that the Republicans' opening offer — a $1 trillion package introduced over the weekend — provided a bulk of the benefits to large corporations, leaving affected workers, front line medical personnel, hospitals and low-income families behind. They've pressed for tens of billions of dollars to expand unemployment benefits, extend food stamps, provide child care services and shore up state and local r gn overnments that are struggling to finance the tsunami of new service requirements.
GOP poison pill....
A major sticking point has been a $500 billion fund, demanded by Republicans, to backstop loans and other guarantees extended to the large industries hit hardest by the crisis, including the airline and cruise line companies. Democrats want strings attached to that lending to ensure that taxpayer dollars aren't used for stock buybacks or CEO compensation, and to protect the employees of those companies from being laid off.
Pelosi said Democrats have made "big progress" on those provisions, and she praised the negotiators for adopting the Democrats' demands that there be oversight over the delivery of that money, including the creation of an independent inspector general to supervise the outlays.
"That's a big change," she said.
She also welcomed the Republicans' concession to include more than $100 billion for a state stabilization fund.
Pelosi did not specify what other remaining provisions might constitute deal-breakers in the eyes of House Democrats. They've been pushing a host of provisions resisted by Republicans, including funding to expand paid leave for workers, ensure smooth-running elections in November, and adopt tougher worker safety provisions to protect the medical workers on the front lines of diagnosing and treating the virus.
But Pelosi suggested some of the outstanding disagreements could be pushed to the future, when Congress will likely be forced to consider yet another round of relief to tackle both the economic and health effects of the novel pandemic.
"There are some issues that I don't think are dealbreakers but are of concern to my members," she said.
Pelosi also stopped short of guaranteeing a deal by the end of the day, deferring to the negotiators.
"Until they have a deal, I can't announce a deal," she said. But she said she's "optimistic' that an agreement could be finalized "in the next few hours."
"Overarchingly, I think we're getting to a good place — if they stay there," she said.
If Senate leaders and the White House are able to strike a deal on the package on Tuesday, it would set the stage for what would likely be quick passage in the upper chamber, sending it to the House.
Pelosi has grappled with the question of whether to call House lawmakers back to Washington to vote on the measure, amid growing concerns about travel, overcrowding, and the acceleration of the virus's spread. Three lawmakers, two in the House and one in the Senate, have already tested positive, and a number of others have self-quarantined as a precautionary measure.
Pelosi said her preference would be to secure a Senate package that could pass the House by unanimous consent, a procedural move allowing the approval of legislation without forcing lawmakers to vote on the floor.
But she left open the option of reconvening the House, either to amend the Senate bill or pass the Democrats' alternative package, if the Senate proposal falls short of her caucus's requirements.
"My goal has always been to bring this bill to the floor under unanimous consent, where we're all in agreement," she said.
"While we all appreciate the urgency," she added, "it's a big responsibility to do it right."
--This report was updated at 11:21 a.m.
Both of your claims are, your claims.
Rebut each point or drop it.
The bill that Senate Republicans produced over the weekend was problematic in multiple ways. It appeared likely to do only a mediocre job of slowing the spread of the virus, halting the economic downturn and protecting American democracy. Consider:
• The bill contained no guaranteed aid to state governments, as Mike Konczal of the Roosevelt Institute noted — and state aid is one of the most effective forms of economic stimulus. Immediate
• “The help for small businesses fell grievously short,” Steven Rattner explained in The Times. Immediate
• The bill would allow corporations “to fire people while still taking bailout money,” as Business Insider’s Linette Lopez wrote — meaning unemployment could spiral. Immediate and ongoing
• The bill would “deny aid to many nonprofit institutions like nursing homes and group homes for the disabled,” my colleague Paul Krugman wrote. Immediate
• The bill did little to make sure the country can hold an election this November even if in-person voting is impossible in some places. Immediate and prudently forward looking
• Most notoriously, the bill included a $425 billion fund for businesses that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin could “do basically whatever he’d like with,” Amanda Fischer of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth explained.
Immediate, and an immediate F.O. if you think Trump or Munch have earned any benefit of the doubt for managing that amount of money without constraints/oversight and at their discretion.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/opinion/coronavirus-bailout-democrats.html
What is amazing is that some people do not acknowledge that the polls are uncorroborated.
Both the Trump approval numbers and the Biden V Trump numbers are consistent with each other and up-to-date. At the very least we should see what the trailing avg looks like from 03/20 onward.
Unless or until these polls mirror Trump's alleged 'handling of the crisis' polls I'm calling outlier at best and absolute horse shit at worst.
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/National.html
McConnell is doing all of the 'chest-beating and blame'.
So, yet again.
No Bill has something the other side doesn't like.
We haven't seen a final Bill.
Your presumption that the GOP Senate Bill is all sweetness and light, much less an effective response to the crisis, is laughable.
Start with 'most notoriously' and work your way back to the beginning. Point by point defend what is criticized or don't post to me again on this subject.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/opinion/coronavirus-bailout-democrats.html
Where's Opera Man when we need him?
If you no wanna catcha or spreada Corona
then you must stay a homa.
Italian politicians ‘lose their s**t’ over virus lockdowns
New York Post, News Corp Australia Network
March 24, 2020 5:47am
Another official blasts locals for going out and getting their hair done amid the outbreak of the deadly virus, according to the video.
“Getting in mobile hairdressers? What the f**k is that for? Who the f**k is supposed to even see you?” the politician says.
https://www.themercury.com.au/italian-mayors-angrily-tell-citizens-to-go-home-as-death-toll-soars/news-story/3b326790ee3e9aaa2fd90f0d5b3f2fcc
Where's Opera Man when we need him?
If you no wanna catcha or spreada Corona
then you must stay a homa.
Italian politicians ‘lose their s**t’ over virus lockdowns
New York Post, News Corp Australia Network
March 24, 2020 5:47am
Another official blasts locals for going out and getting their hair done amid the outbreak of the deadly virus, according to the video.
“Getting in mobile hairdressers? What the f**k is that for? Who the f**k is supposed to even see you?” the politician says.
https://www.themercury.com.au/italian-mayors-angrily-tell-citizens-to-go-home-as-death-toll-soars/news-story/3b326790ee3e9aaa2fd90f0d5b3f2fcc
How the 2008 and 2020 recessions will be different, and why that matters
With the likelihood of a recession caused by the coronavirus outbreak, lawmakers have begun talking about remedies that will sound familiar to anyone who lived through the Great Recession of 2008: stimulus checks, assistance to hard-hit businesses, and moves by the Federal Reserve.
But economists say the upcoming recession is actually quite different from the Great Recession — and that will have consequences for the policy response.
What are the differences between the 2008 and 2020 recessions?
Experts told us the 2008 recession was caused by a lack of demand after the bursting of the housing bubble sent construction plummeting.
By contrast, the current crisis was not caused by pre-existing economic weakness. Instead, the impending recession stems from a health problem and the fear of contagion.
This is an important distinction for several reasons:
• It’s a rare cause for a recession, so there’s no ready game plan. The last time this happened was the recession that followed the Spanish flu of 1918. But the times were very different in terms of the economy, medical knowledge and technology. So there is no ready model for policymakers now to follow.
• The contraction is happening with unusual speed. In the recession of 2008, a slowdown in the housing sector began as early as late 2005. In the current crisis, the shutdown of big parts of the economy is happening over just a few weeks.
• Social distancing has a unique effect on the economy. The response to the coronavirus has been to keep people physically apart, which makes it difficult if not impossible to spend money, at everything from shops to restaurants to theaters to travel-related industries. Even people who have kept their jobs are likely spending less.
• More businesses in more economic sectors may fail now. In 2008, no sector of the economy had to completely shut down. The current crisis, however, has left service-oriented businesses, such as restaurants, with no customers.
• The current downturn has the potential to be temporary. There’s still deep uncertainty about how quickly the pandemic will pass, especially if second and third waves of infections emerge, requiring future rounds of social distancing. But once the epidemic passes, there will be pent-up demand. This offers hope for a better scenario than what played out after the Great Recession.
How do these differences affect the economic solutions?
The economists we interviewed offered these ideas for responding to the coronavirus crisis.
• Short-term payments. We found widespread support among economists for cash payments to people and businesses, though also a clear-eyed understanding of the limits of that approach. In a conventional recession, handing out stimulus money helps people spend quickly. But there are limits to how effective giving out cash can be at a time when people are required to stay in their houses most of the time.
• Loans or other assistance to businesses. These payments could be aimed broadly, or at certain sectors that are particularly hard hit. But if businesses get aid, experts said, it needs to be targeted for the benefit of workers, rather than executives.
• Federal Reserve moves. The Federal Reserve can use several levers in a crisis. We go into greater detail on those levers here; they include signaling about future interest rates, asset purchases, and helping financial institutions with loans or guarantees.
• Housing cost relief. One idea now being tried in hard-hit European countries is pausing all payments for mortgages, rents, and utilities. For most people, the cost of housing and utilities makes up a significant share of their disposable income. If what they owe drops significantly, then the financial pressure from getting laid off declines, particularly if the unusual nature of this recession means that something approaching normal returns quickly.
The Latest from PolitiFact
• The National Guard is not coming to quarantine you: A widely shared text message says that the federal government is “preparing to mobilize the national guard,” “dispatch them across the US with military” and “announce a nationwide 1 week quarantine for all citizens.” This is False.
State and local governments retain the power to quarantine Americans within their own borders. On the federal level, the Department of Homeland Security can screen and quarantine individuals reentering the U.S. from other countries. But forced quarantines are historically rare, and most infected people are allowed to self-quarantine.
• How long the coronavirus survives on surfaces: The 2019 coronavirus can live for "up to 3 hours in the air, up to 4 hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard up to 3 days on plastic and stainless steel,” says a recent Facebook post. We rated that Mostly True. Aside from air, the worst surface for the virus is copper; researchers could only detect viable virus particles there for up to four hours. On cardboard, they could not detect any after 24 hours. The coronavirus lives the longest on plastic and stainless steel — up to three days. This research is still being studied, however.
• Is there a link between COVID-19 and blood type: A research report showing a possible link between blood type and the likelihood of contracting coronavirus has been written up in various mainstream news publications, and it’s getting some play on social media, too. The basic claim is that people with blood type A are more likely to contract the novel coronavirus. We're leaving the statement unrated for now — the study that is the basis for the claim was not peer reviewed or published in a scientific or medical journal. Experts caution against immediately accepting the its conclusions.
What We're Reading & Watching
• The Simulator: Have you seen the simulation created by the Washington Post that shows why "social distancing" is better than a quarantine? It's worth checking out; it shows visually how viruses can randomly circulate within a community. It's such an eye-catching visual that the Poynter Institute wrote about how the Washington Post put it together.
https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2020/how-a-blockbuster-washington-post-story-made-social-distancing-easy-to-understand/
• Best-case scenario; worst-case scenario: Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times spoke with experts about what the next few weeks may bring us in regards to the coronavirus. His best-case scenario and worst-case scenario are alternately heartening and scary. Both are worth your time.
• "After Truth," an HBO documentary: A new look at disinformation shows that it's not harmless. It has real-world consequences and victims. The documentary looks at conspiracy theories like Jade Helm, Pizzagate and more, and it interviews leading journalists about how to combat disinformation (including, briefly, me!). Read the New York Times review.
Has President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act? It’s complicated
As the coronavirus spreads, there’s increasing discussion of how to quickly scale up the manufacture of ventilators and other urgently needed medical items.
The Defense Production Act, signed by President Harry Truman, allows the federal government to take a stronger role in directing domestic manufacturing capabilities during a national emergency.
Both Trump and his critics have talked about the law as concerns grow about shortages of protective gear and other equipment needed to contain the pandemic.
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden tweeted that Trump was not acting fast enough: "Yesterday, President Trump said he was invoking the Defense Production Act, then turned around and said he wasn't planning to use it. The President should exercise these powers now. We need more ventilators, protective equipment, and critical supplies."
So what’s going on here? Has the president invoked the act or not?
Here's are the facts:
• Trump recently invoked the act by executive order. However, there’s a difference between invoking the act and actually using its powers.
• Some powers in the law are not considered controversial and are expected to be executed soon, such as requiring businesses to prioritize contracts for medical supplies.
• A more far-reaching step would be for the government to take control of the supply chain for key medical products. That step has not been taken, despite strong urging from the medical community. Read more.
Reader Questions about the Coronavirus
Here are two questions from our latest installment where we answer reader questions. Submit new questions via this Google form.
What is the treatment for people who test positive for coronavirus?
As of now, there is no specific treatment for people infected with COVID-19. But there are some things they can do to alleviate their symptoms while in self-quarantine.
The coronavirus is a virus, meaning antibiotics don’t work against the infection. There also aren’t currently any antiviral medications recommended to treat COVID-19, although President Donald Trump has said the Food and Drug Administration is fast-tracking potential treatments.
According to the Mayo Clinic, there are still a few things patients with the coronavirus can do to alleviate symptoms, which include cough, shortness of breath and fever. Cough medicine, pain and fever relievers, rest, and fluids are all recommended.
Is it really recommended to avoid ibuprofen if you have COVID-19?
In the U.S., not as of now. But it’s complicated.
French doctors recently cast doubt on using ibuprofen, a fever and pain reliever, to treat the coronavirus. Some experts believe ibuprofen’s anti-inflammatory properties could dampen the immune system’s response to fighting off COVID-19.
But professionals also say this is just a theory and that there’s no scientific evidence that links ibuprofen and other anti-inflammatory medications with COVID-19 complications. American health officials have found no evidence that the over-the-counter drug is not safe for COVID-19 patients to use.
Still, England's National Health Service is one of the organizations that is recommending people err on the side of caution.
"Until we have more info, take paracetamol to treat the symptoms of coronavirus, unless your doctor has told you paracetamol is not suitable for you," NHS wrote March 18. Paracetamol is also known as acetaminophen.
There is not enough credible information to say for sure whether ibuprofen can negatively impact patients with coronavirus. Right now, people should remain skeptical about sweeping statements that make bold claims about ibuprofen and the virus.
Have questions or ideas for our coverage? Send me an email at holan@politifact.com. Put “Fact-checking” in the subject line.
Thanks for reading!
Angie Drobnic Holan
PolitiFact Editor-in-Chief
https://www.politifact.com/article/2020/mar/20/how-2008-and-2020-recessions-will-be-different-and/
https://www.politifact.com/
Plan Beats No Plan
The first-mover advantage in Congress.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/opinion/coronavirus-bailout-democrats.html
By David Leonhardt
Opinion Columnist
Senate Democrats and the Trump administration seem to be on the verge of a compromise agreement on a stimulus bill. We’ll find out more about the details of that deal as the day goes on. This morning, I want to spend a moment on the lessons of the political debate about the stimulus over the last few days.
There were two key facts: Congressional Republicans produced a deeply flawed stimulus bill. Congressional Democrats did a deeply flawed job of managing the politics of that same bill.
The bill that Senate Republicans produced over the weekend was problematic in multiple ways. It appeared likely to do only a mediocre job of slowing the spread of the virus, halting the economic downturn and protecting American democracy. Consider:
• The bill contained no guaranteed aid to state governments, as Mike Konczal of the Roosevelt Institute noted — and state aid is one of the most effective forms of economic stimulus.
• “The help for small businesses fell grievously short,” Steven Rattner explained in The Times.
• The bill would allow corporations “to fire people while still taking bailout money,” as Business Insider’s Linette Lopez wrote — meaning unemployment could spiral.
• The bill would “deny aid to many nonprofit institutions like nursing homes and group homes for the disabled,” my colleague Paul Krugman wrote.
• The bill did little to make sure the country can hold an election this November even if in-person voting is impossible in some places.
• Most notoriously, the bill included a $425 billion fund for businesses that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin could “do basically whatever he’d like with,” Amanda Fischer of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth explained.
Given all of these flaws, you might think that the Democrats would be winning the political debate over the bill. They weren’t. The news yesterday was full of blaring headlines about Democrats blocking an emergency bill at a time when the country is clearly in crisis. The Democrats looked like the ones standing in the way of an urgent piece of legislation.
The mistake they made was allowing the Senate, which is controlled by Republicans, to begin working on a bill while the House, which is controlled by Democrats, waited passively. As a result, there have been only two options for much of the last few days: the Republican plan and no plan.
House Democrats did finally produce their own bill yesterday. But it was too late to have the effect that it could have had earlier.
Some progressives responded yesterday by complaining about the headlines that described Democrats as blocking the bill. But Senate Democrats were blocking the bill. The problem wasn’t the headlines, it was the Democrats’ strategy. If they’re smart, they won’t make the same mistake again in the coming weeks.
Plan Beats No Plan
The first-mover advantage in Congress.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/opinion/coronavirus-bailout-democrats.html
By David Leonhardt
Opinion Columnist
Senate Democrats and the Trump administration seem to be on the verge of a compromise agreement on a stimulus bill. We’ll find out more about the details of that deal as the day goes on. This morning, I want to spend a moment on the lessons of the political debate about the stimulus over the last few days.
There were two key facts: Congressional Republicans produced a deeply flawed stimulus bill. Congressional Democrats did a deeply flawed job of managing the politics of that same bill.
The bill that Senate Republicans produced over the weekend was problematic in multiple ways. It appeared likely to do only a mediocre job of slowing the spread of the virus, halting the economic downturn and protecting American democracy. Consider:
• The bill contained no guaranteed aid to state governments, as Mike Konczal of the Roosevelt Institute noted — and state aid is one of the most effective forms of economic stimulus.
• “The help for small businesses fell grievously short,” Steven Rattner explained in The Times.
• The bill would allow corporations “to fire people while still taking bailout money,” as Business Insider’s Linette Lopez wrote — meaning unemployment could spiral.
• The bill would “deny aid to many nonprofit institutions like nursing homes and group homes for the disabled,” my colleague Paul Krugman wrote.
• The bill did little to make sure the country can hold an election this November even if in-person voting is impossible in some places.
• Most notoriously, the bill included a $425 billion fund for businesses that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin could “do basically whatever he’d like with,” Amanda Fischer of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth explained.
Given all of these flaws, you might think that the Democrats would be winning the political debate over the bill. They weren’t. The news yesterday was full of blaring headlines about Democrats blocking an emergency bill at a time when the country is clearly in crisis. The Democrats looked like the ones standing in the way of an urgent piece of legislation.
The mistake they made was allowing the Senate, which is controlled by Republicans, to begin working on a bill while the House, which is controlled by Democrats, waited passively. As a result, there have been only two options for much of the last few days: the Republican plan and no plan.
House Democrats did finally produce their own bill yesterday. But it was too late to have the effect that it could have had earlier.
Some progressives responded yesterday by complaining about the headlines that described Democrats as blocking the bill. But Senate Democrats were blocking the bill. The problem wasn’t the headlines, it was the Democrats’ strategy. If they’re smart, they won’t make the same mistake again in the coming weeks.
I listed what I supported. Stop pretending that every GOP provision is acceptable. It's likely That both side will have to accept provisions they don't like. That's how it works.
"....trump's approval rating is in the same low 40's as it's been forever but 55% think he's doing a stellar job handling this crisis? Something's wrong with this poll."
That's the heart of it. I made that same point when the first post of those poll results appeared.
Those briefings with his stream of conscious, word salad, incoherent, fact challenged, science illiterate, babbling and wishful thinking CAN'T be doing him any good with the voters he needs.
The universally respected Dr. Fauci effectively facepalmed himself off the briefing team. If he doesn't return soon there will be some splainin' to do.
The Biden V Trump polls mirror the Trump approval numbers, so it's 2 to 1 in polls that add up to 'Donny Two Scoops you suck and we want Biden.'
The alternative take is 'we really think you're for shit, Donny. But on this virus deal, man, you are kicking it.'
I don't think so.
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/us/general_election_trump_vs_biden-6247.html
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html