Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Chat about stuff other than Transformers.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

Probably staffing levels and how much they feel they can keep track of -- Boots don't want people browsing, touching stuff, etc. either so they've closed the cosmetics side.

Hardware counts as essential, and garden places are generally doing deliveries (our back garden's mostly allotment). It varies -- my brother-in-law's family builders merchant is deliveries only, the one up the road from us has premises open and is limiting people on site. Elsewhere, some police forces are getting a bit of a hammering for making up their own rules that aren't in the legislation.

Do think they should have closed parks over the four day weekend, it's likely to set things back weeks.
User avatar
StoneCold Skywarp
Posts: 6300
Joined: Sat Sep 16, 2000 4:00 am
Custom Title: Best Served Chilled
Location: UK

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by StoneCold Skywarp »

Warcry wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:15 pmWould it be better or worse for the country if he gets offed by this?
It's a high profile case that will make people more aware of it. Unfortunately I don't think this as a death would actually have the most impact. It would have to be a high profile sports star or a high profile reality TV star for people to actually take notice.
It's crazy the amount of people that are being turned away travelling to the Lake District and the amount of traffic on the roads in general is still far too much
Tantrum wrote: Wed Apr 08, 2020 10:02 pm Still, it's really starting to feel like a matter of when I'll get Coronavirus, not if.
I know a fair few front-line workers (NHS and social care) and this is what they're basically being told.
User avatar
inflatable dalek
Posts: 24000
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2004 3:15 pm
Location: Kidderminster UK

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by inflatable dalek »

The attempt to turn Johnson into some sort of national hero who can't be criticised has made me throw up a bit in the back of my throat.

I certainly don't want him, or anyone, dead from this (though equally I know that's from a position of privilege, people who have had their lives destroyed or lost loved ones to the eugenics of austerity, or been the targets of his racism and sexism, have every right to have been wanting to line up outside his hospital room with a pillow to put over his face), but have zero sympathy for someone who went out of their way to get infected because of their arrogant believe only the weak and disposable will die from this and he thinks he is neither.

It's his infected heavily pregnant partner I feel more sorry for.
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

Skyquake87 wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 10:07 amIn other puzzling retail excursions, B&M are open as they carry food and household essentials. Oddly, aisles with non-essentials - gardening, DIY, toys - were all fenced off. Yet Supermarkets who have a mix of essentials and non-essentials are okay to sell non-essentials..?
Here, stores like Wal-mart are letting in very few people at a time, to the extent that there are lines outside of people waiting to get in. In cases like that, it makes sense to block off non-essentials so people don't spend time browsing those, keeping people buying groceries waiting outside.

Supermarkets have smaller sections for non-essentials, so blocking them off might be harder. My local supermarket has toys in part of an aisle with magazines on the same side. I think the other side more essential items, like light bulbs. Blocking one side without blocking the other would be difficult, if not impossible. Or, the non-essentials may only be partway down the aisle. Blocking that would require having people turn around, which defeats the one way aisles they've set up.

Since the amount of non-essentials in a supermarket is small compared to the amount of essentials, people browsing non-essentials aren't going to be in the store much longer than people only buying essentials. So, it doesn't make as much sense to hurry them along.

That may be moot for me, as this is Hasbroland. Our governor was asked about blocking non-essentials, and cited Hasbro as a reason not to. Of course, this almost a whole week ago, when our total number of cases was less than 1,000. Today, we broke 2,000. I've thought about going to Walmart to check for toys once I've made a proper mask, but don't want to take time away from people buying food. Plus, have they even been stocking toys since I was there last month?

Ocean State Job Lot (a chain that extends well beyond the Ocean State) is giving away cloth to make face masks. I went today, and got a cloth napkin like you'd see in nice restaurants back when you could go to restaurants. I bought a pack of hair elastics to use instead of rubber bands. They're adding a 2% surcharge to all purchases, which goes to their employees, to provide them with some extra income during the pandemic.
User avatar
Warcry
Posts: 13934
Joined: Fri Aug 23, 2002 4:10 am
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Warcry »

StoneCold Skywarp wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 1:36 pmIt's crazy the amount of people that are being turned away travelling to the Lake District and the amount of traffic on the roads in general is still far too much
It's the same here...lots of morons talking about flouting quarantine to go open up their cabins for the summer during the Victoria Day long weekend next month. Crossing into Ontario and ignoring the whole "quarantine at home for two weeks if you cross provincial borders" thing on the way home, too. I get the feeling the RCMP will be very busy that weekend.
StoneCold Skywarp wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 1:36 pm I know a fair few front-line workers (NHS and social care) and this is what they're basically being told.
I think it's true for most anyone who is still out working in an environment with lots of people...health care but also construction, delivery, retail. When they give 30% as the low point for the number of folks who might get infected, those people and their close contacts are who they're really talking about. My family? We only need to be within ten yards of other people for a few minutes a week. We're pretty well protected by social distancing. Not everyone is so lucky.
Tantrum wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2020 11:36 pm That may be moot for me, as this is Hasbroland. Our governor was asked about blocking non-essentials, and cited Hasbro as a reason not to. Of course, this almost a whole week ago, when our total number of cases was less than 1,000. Today, we broke 2,000. I've thought about going to Walmart to check for toys once I've made a proper mask, but don't want to take time away from people buying food. Plus, have they even been stocking toys since I was there last month?
Just a tip: non-medical masks really don't protect YOU, so much as they protect other people FROM you. The disease isn't airborne to a huge degree, and it's mostly spread by contact with contaminated surfaces. What masks are really good for is catching a lot of your saliva and mucus if you start sneezing or coughing in public, so that you aren't the one making surfaces contaminated. So even if you're masked up, you should be wary about going out more than you really need to. All your precautions might not matter if some slob who doesn't know he's got the COVID sneezed into his hands before handling the Ironworks you pick up off the shelf. :( That doesn't mean you shouldn't wear one, but don't let it give you a false sense of security either. I don't mean to lecture, I just see so many people wearing masks improperly, or wearing completely useless ghetto-rigged ones (I honestly saw some moron with a hair net stretched across his face last week...) acting like they're totally safe because of it. I know you're smarter than that, but sadly not everyone in our fandom is.

My local Walmart actually HAS been stocking toys through all of this, and I can tell because I saw the new Netflix stuff when I went through for a grocery shop. It actually kind of pissed me off. Like, you guys can't even restock your paper products aisle, to the point where you gave up and filled the space with bottled water, but you've got room on the trucks for THIS? Really?
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

I know my mask protects other people more than me. But, I can't expect other people to wear masks to protect me if I'm not willing to do the same for them. I forget the name for this principle, but it's one of two things I remember from half a dozen philosophy courses in college. The other is when we were discussing if it'd be ethical to steal medicine to save a sick family member, and one guy said, ethical or not, he'd still do it.

Plus, a mask prevents me from touching my nose and mouth while I'm out. When I get home, I just wash my hand for 20 sec before removing the mask. I didn't think to do that when I got home today, when I was out in a disposable mask.

I probably won't go. I don't want to delay anyone doing important shopping. If I notice I need something, and am looking at Walmart for it, I'll stop by the TF and Lego aisles while I'm there. But, I won't make a special trip.
Warcry wrote: Sat Apr 11, 2020 2:32 amMy local Walmart actually HAS been stocking toys through all of this, and I can tell because I saw the new Netflix stuff when I went through for a grocery shop. It actually kind of pissed me off. Like, you guys can't even restock your paper products aisle, to the point where you gave up and filled the space with bottled water, but you've got room on the trucks for THIS? Really?
I don't think room on the trucks is why they're running out of consumer goods like TP. There's an artificial increase of demand caused by people hoarding. Plus, there's an actual increase in demand caused by people being home all day, no longer using the bathrooms at work or school. The supply chain hasn't had time to adapt.


A musician I know in Boston live streamed an ad hoc concert with her housemates, who are also musicians, tonight since none of them can play anywhere else. They've already outfitted the common area as a performance/rehearsal space. It was some them taking turns playing songs individually, some collaborations, and a lot of trying to figure out what to do next. The housemates are talented, but not really my cup of tea. But, the one I know did two of my favorite songs of hers. The second song was the first time I've heard it accompanied by a percussionist, since she normally plays with a cellist.

I've also used my housebound time to work on my TFs. I mentioned in Newest Acquisitions that I repaired my siege Nightbird's arm and G1 reissue Hoist's wrist. I've also equipped Nightbird with Ninjago weapons (pics and details here) and sanded down the barrel of a junker T30 Blitzwing so it'll fit TR Blitzwing. The barrel fits kind of snugly now, so I'm trying to decide if I should glue it in place.

Anyone else finding unusual ways to make use of your time?


Edit: I did end up going to Walmart, because I realized I couldn't remember the last time I changed the batteries in my smoke detectors. No point in avoiding coronavirus if I'm on fire. After the Governor's 1pm update that there've been were 7 more RI deaths (56 toal) over the past 24 hours, I went to Walmart. They played an inspirational, "We'll get through this together" message over the PA system, immediately followed by "Another One Bites the Dust".

I got batteries, but they had no new Transformers. There were more of the same SS Deluxes and Voyagers they had last time, so they are restocking. I'm going to write today's date on a piece of masking tape, and stick it to a smoke detector, so I'll know when I changed the batteries.

Here's the instructions Ocean State Job Lot linked to for making a mask without sewing. It took me a couple tries to figure out where to fold the ends around the elastics so the mask would fit snugly without popping off, but it seems to work.
User avatar
Clay
Posts: 7209
Joined: Mon May 24, 2004 2:19 am
Location: Murray, KY

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Clay »

Tantrum wrote: Sat Apr 11, 2020 4:26 am I know my mask protects other people more than me. But, I can't expect other people to wear masks to protect me if I'm not willing to do the same for them. I forget the name for this principle, but it's one of two things I remember from half a dozen philosophy courses in college.
That's the golden rule, isn't it? Do unto others as you would have them do unto you? Or is there a fancier name for it in philosophy proper?
Anyone else finding unusual ways to make use of your time?
I have, in earnest, begun to clean my apartment out of accumulated junk. And I ordered a shade tent to make the slab of concrete I call my backyard more hospitable so that I can idle out there and maybe finish some customs I started a decade or more ago. We shall see...

That, and playing through old video games. Finished tie fighter a while back. It was harder than I remember.

Also outlining an expanded version of my optimus prime essay, although that will likely takes weeks or months to assemble. But at least I have time now.
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

Clay wrote: Mon Apr 13, 2020 11:11 pmThat's the golden rule, isn't it? Do unto others as you would have them do unto you? Or is there a fancier name for it in philosophy proper?
The general principle was a bit broader, about equality. An action could only be considered ethical if it would be OK for everyone to perform the same action. It covered the golden rule as well as tragedy of the commons. Since it would be bad for everyone to walk around without masks, it's bad for me to walk around without a mask. I think it was mentioned towards the end of The Good Place, but I can't explain where without spoilers.

By the way, if you're looking for something to binge watch, try The Good Place.

Now I feel better about spending thousands of dollars on these little plastic doo-dads. I spent thousands on philosophy courses and got damn near nothing out of them. At least TFs look cool.

If you do finish those customs, be sure to post some pics.
User avatar
inflatable dalek
Posts: 24000
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2004 3:15 pm
Location: Kidderminster UK

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by inflatable dalek »

Well, all the money I've been saving means I've upgraded to a 4K TV and blu ray player at last.

I tell you what my fine friends, Moonraker looks amazing on a 4K TV. Roger Moore's face, less so.
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

inflatable dalek wrote: Fri Apr 17, 2020 4:11 pm Well, all the money I've been saving means I've upgraded to a 4K TV and blu ray player at last.

I tell you what my fine friends, Moonraker looks amazing on a 4K TV. Roger Moore's face, less so.
I was using an old tube TV until last September, when my parents gave me their 42 inch 720p plasma after buying a 55 inch TV for themselves. I like that it's a bigger screen, but don't notice much about the improved picture quality. I was rewatching Attack on Titan on it, and the only thing that stuck out was the detail on the trees when 4 characters were standing around on branches talking. Not the characters themselves, the trees.

It is nice that I can hook a Raspberry Pi (a small computer that runs Linux) up to it and watch Youtube videos in my living room. And write this post.

Today, my state announced 366 new cases for a total of 4,177. That's bad enough, but yesterday's total was 3,838, and those numbers don't add up. 3,838 + 366 = 4,204. Typos happen, and the numbers are rising fast enough that any exact total is inaccurate an hour later, anyway. I'm just annoyed that none of the media outlets seem to have cought this.

In any case, 1/250 RI residents has tested positive. On the island where I live, it's closer to 1/1,000. From a purely selfish standpoint, it looks like I'm getting the benefits of a governor cracking down hard due to high rates of coronavirus infection without having to live in an area with a high rate of infection. I'm certainly more appreciative of this than these assholes protesting stay-at-home orders. Scroll down, and you'll see a bunch of people crammed up against a pair of glass doors, barely 6 inches apart nevermind 6 feet, and the only mask is a V for Vendetta/Guy Fawkes mask.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

Tantrum wrote: Sat Apr 18, 2020 2:55 amIt is nice that I can hook a Raspberry Pi (a small computer that runs Linux) up to it and watch Youtube videos in my living room.
With a fan? How's the heat and does it play 1080p content reliably? Contemplating similar if I ever buy a TV, as the fanless Shuttle XS35GT I've got still lying around is fine for DVD and 720p files but higher resolution depends on format and what can take advantage of the acceleration of the built-in graphics.
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

Denyer wrote: Sat Apr 18, 2020 3:37 pm
Tantrum wrote: Sat Apr 18, 2020 2:55 amIt is nice that I can hook a Raspberry Pi (a small computer that runs Linux) up to it and watch Youtube videos in my living room.
With a fan? How's the heat and does it play 1080p content reliably? Contemplating similar if I ever buy a TV, as the fanless Shuttle XS35GT I've got still lying around is fine for DVD and 720p files but higher resolution depends on format and what can take advantage of the acceleration of the built-in graphics.
No fan, no heat sink, and the case has no airholes. I used to get a flashing red and white symbol in the upper right corner of the screen, which I eventually realized was a thermometer, when I set youtube to 720p. I turned off hardware acceleration in Chromium, and that's mostly gone away. I might still get it when watching a 720p video on avclub, or a related site.

I can't speak to 1080p since I never use it due to my TV only being 720p. But, given my borderline case with 720p, you'd probably want the fan for 1080p.


Today's figures for RI say 317 new, 4,491 total. This means the correct total for yesterday was 4,174 (not 4,177) with 336 (not 366) new. So, somebody just repeated the wrong digit in each case.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

Yeah, that's what puts me off the Pi models they've come out with -- refurb small form factor PCs from a few years back are cheap, and the build quality and spec of something like a ThinkCentre M92p Tiny is hard to beat and perfectly fine as a daily driver PC, or anything less demanding.
User avatar
Clay
Posts: 7209
Joined: Mon May 24, 2004 2:19 am
Location: Murray, KY

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Clay »

:sick:

I'm now literally having to explain to someone on facebook that news agencies use b roll / stock footage and photography to give you something to look it, and that it's not a grand conspiracy by the international communist cabal to take away your freedoms when
they use the same footage for different stories, and especially right now as they're not going to let camera crews into the ICU during a pandemic.

rraaaaAAAgfdghdashhkl;dagkl;hjgdahkl;d;LSKJFD :nonono:
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52407177

If Trump's latest briefing convinces supporters to inject themselves with what he suggested, that could solve a multitude of problems?

edit: https://twitter.com/Dryl/status/1253734325251645443 -- nicely framed photo
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

https://www.npr.org/sections/coronaviru ... 7747101867

Interesting. It's only sample testing but would appear to support a relatively large amount of asymptomatic spread.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

Good -- https://science.slashdot.org/story/20/0 ... eaps-ahead

Bad -- silent hypoxia https://news784.com/coronavirus/the-inf ... NgY0u2IYTc

Ugly -- Putting two and two together -- NHS app won't use Apple/Google method, and will suffer because of that; https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-52441428 -- and the contract for the app apparently went to an acquaintance of Dominic Cummings -- https://twitter.com/carolecadwalla/stat ... 9135151104

edit: Uglier -- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-52440641 (Panorama on PPE)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m ... ed-the-nhs
User avatar
Skyquake87
Protoform
Posts: 3983
Joined: Sun Jul 04, 2010 9:34 am

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Skyquake87 »

Not unrelated, Clipper have been awarded the contract for couriering PPE. They also donated lots of money to the Tory party.

I don't trust the government with IT projects, (least of all Matt Hancock's enthusiasm for 'virtual GP services' and other such App based snake oil) - their last fiascos have been the failed attempt to introduce a national database for IT for the NHS which ran millions overbudget and had to be abandoned, and saddling the Post Office with an IT system in Horizon that wasn't fit for purpose to be used for the Department Of Work & Pensions for benefit payments. It was perfectly fine to be used for the Post Office thought, where it caused major shortfalls in Post Office accounting that saw a number of sub-Postmasters wrongly jailed for discrepancies in their accounts.

Still, it's got to be better than injecting disinfectant
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Denyer »

Plausible disinformation alert -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPJqnTZgahU -- the notion that a virus was circulating in the UK before in-country cases hit the news following severe cases abroad.

It's Sky News and YouTube comments, but... over the last few months, I had the annual flu jab. I also came down with something that developed into a dry hacking cough that wouldn't shift for weeks, that went around the office, and an immediate (male) colleague who's a fitness nut and rarely ill also did. I remember actively keeping a distance from friends and family because it was sufficiently bad. I don't recall if the only other bloke in our department had it so evidently.

TL;DR -- wouldn't be surprised if something related was already in circulation. Would not make the claim it's the same thing.
User avatar
Tantrum
Posts: 670
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 1:24 am
Custom Title: Systems Analyst
Location: Aquidneck Island, RI, USA

Re: Covid 19 / everybody PANDEMIC

Post by Tantrum »

Skyquake87 wrote: Mon Apr 27, 2020 8:57 pmStill, it's got to be better than injecting disinfectant
Hey, now. When Trump's right, he's right; if you consume bleach, you will not die of coronavirus. You will die of bleach poisoning. That's the way to avoid coronavirus that the Deep State and lamestream media elites don't want you to know about. "You can't fire me, coronavirus, I quit!" Think about it. If you die from bleach poisoning, how deep will they bury you? 6 feet. What's the minimum distance for social distancing? SIX FEET! Coincidence? I think not. Wake up, sheeple.
Post Reply