COVID-19 thread

[Raphael]

Three cases of the new variant in the States and one of them is in my county.

Good luck!

[Raphael]

About four years since it first got reported. Somehow, the time belt both longer and shorter than four years.

[malloc]

Unfortunately the new regime in the US has decided only old people and those with certain health problems can get the vaccine now. No idea how I will address this problem but it looks like I will have to forgo social activities now to avoid unnecessary risk. Either that or I must find something to prove I qualify for the shot.

[keenir]

but it looks like I will have to forgo social activities now to avoid unnecessary risk.

now that, I did not expect.

Either that or I must find something to prove I qualify for the shot.

Cheerleaders don't qualify? as Zuko says, thats rough, man.

[Torco]

maybe you could get a certificate for obesity, diabetes or asthma? those work, at least here, along with "i'm in an especially vulnerable group pls inject"

[linguistcat]

You could always wear a mask. And before you say "I'm in a Red State TM, I can't do that!" I also live in a Red State TM and I do that all the time. Even if there are laws that people can refuse you service if you wear one, well, you don't want to support places that are hubs for all kinds of germs in addition to COVID do you?

[malloc]

You could always wear a mask. And before you say "I'm in a Red State TM, I can't do that!" I also live in a Red State TM and I do that all the time. Even if there are laws that people can refuse you service if you wear one, well, you don't want to support places that are hubs for all kinds of germs in addition to COVID do you?

It depends on how well masks protect you from the disease. I always heard that they serve more to prevent you from spreading it to others than keeping you from getting sick. That said, it probably depends on the quality of mask.

[Richard W]

It depends on how well masks protect you from the disease. I always heard that they serve more to prevent you from spreading it to others than keeping you from getting sick. That said, it probably depends on the quality of mask.

I've heard that too, but in the context of reduced immune function, I was assured that it did help. The hospital doctor assured me that switching to regularly wearing a surgical mask had kept her healthier. So, it may not be perfect protection for the wearer, but it helps.

[linguistcat]

You could always wear a mask. And before you say "I'm in a Red State TM, I can't do that!" I also live in a Red State TM and I do that all the time. Even if there are laws that people can refuse you service if you wear one, well, you don't want to support places that are hubs for all kinds of germs in addition to COVID do you?

It depends on how well masks protect you from the disease. I always heard that they serve more to prevent you from spreading it to others than keeping you from getting sick. That said, it probably depends on the quality of mask.

I mean obviously, being alive on it's own comes with a myriad of risks. I've never heard of something that died that hadn't first been alive. And with the exception of some very simple animals for SOME definitions of immortal, everything on Earth that's alive dies eventually. But if our government isn't protecting us, we have to do the best with what we have available, for both our physical and mental health. You seem like social interaction would greatly improve your mental health, so having a way to decrease your risks while being able to socialize would help you overall. Plus there are diseases besides COVID that are less likely to infect you when you wear a mask regularly.

[Torco]

actually i kindof understand the people from south asia who use masks just because, even before covid. I used to get little colds [you know, cold symptoms but for maybe 36 hours or so] often. my gf started using a mask on the train when she had to take it, and sure, it could be a concidence, but i did experience a marked drop in the frequency of the little colds, so it plausibly helped.

and like, it would, wouldn't it? there's probably like a vast number of little pathogens going around other than covid. and, honestly, i used to get at least one good flu every year, but that frequency has also dropped a lot since covid, possibly cause people are more careful about licking doorknobs etcetera.

[Raphael]

actually i kindof understand the people from south asia who use masks just because, even before covid.

What I find a bit is weird that, at least in some Western countries, wearing masks used to be something that people with certain kinds of contrarian or fringe beliefs did. Then, in the years from 2020 onward, the people with the fringe or contrarian beliefs were suddenly the ones who absolutely refused to wear masks.

[Torco]

I think moreso than frige or contrarian, that's a feature concretely of people caught in far right disinformation... vortexes? bubbles? communities? in the claws of the global lie machine? however one wants to call it. that's because there's also a left-wing fringe contrarians I don't think many of those went for the antivax, antimask, covid denialism vibe (though some more lumpenized people i sometimes hang out with did)

I don't remember anyone, at least here, weaking masks in public before covid (except the odd south-asian looking person in the subway)

[malloc]

Looks like we might be getting a new pandemic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Hondiu ... s_outbreak

[bradrn]

Looks like we might be getting a new pandemic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Hondiu ... s_outbreak

No, we probably won’t be.